Wednesday, October 31, 2012

Kissme Heavy Rotation Milky Matte Lips Swatches

Kissme is a Japanese drugstore brand, found in drugstores here locally for relatively reasonable prices. The Kissme Heavy Rotation Milky Matte Lips (what a mouthful of a product name) are a bunch of pale nude lip colours with a very pronounced matte finish, not unlike the NARS Pure Matte Lipsticks released sometime back. The difference is, these are all in light shades, whereas NARS had theirs in a wider range of colours.


There are four shades in all. 01 Pure Pink is a very pale nude pink; 02 Vanilla Pink is more like pale peach with hint of pink; 03 Sweet Pink is a pinky peach, and is pale but not as "nude lips"-like as 1 and 2; and 04 Cinnamon Pink is the darkest, also a little bit leaning towards orange. I'd call it a peach with hint of cinnamon.

All the colours are very pale, nude lip (or corpse-lip, depending on your skintone) type of concealer-ish colours. They have a very heavy matte texture and are a tad drying. I recall some bloggers/makeup artists using actual concealer on lips for that extreme nude lip effect, I imagine this is probably similar (except that it might not taste as bad as concealer).

Monday, October 29, 2012

Apivita Pink Clay Mask: Gentle Cleaning For Your Face

Apivita is a Greek skincare brand, with a focus on natural and holistic skincare. Although personally I'm not really a suscriber of the "all natural skincare is better" theory (after all, not all synthetic ingredients are bad for your skin, and not all natural ingredients are good for your skin), but I've been trying out some of their products, and I generally think that the brand's products hold up to a pretty good standard. I don't think it's the "natural" branding as much as the fact that the products are easy and pleasing to use and effective.

This next product is one case in point. The Apivita Pink Clay Mask is the most recent product I've tried from the brand, and I like it. It's billed as a "gentle cleansing mask with pink clay", which piqued my interest significantly. Pink clay? Sign me up!


The mask is actually pink, and rather thick in texture, like most clay masks. It's thickness really makes it luxurious to use, and very substantial feeling. I rather like clay masks for my oily skin as I find they help to absorb some of the oil out of my pores. For the Apivita Pink Clay Mask, I had rather good results. The mask helped to make my skin less oily, while at the same time softening my skin. For me, the mask really worked.

apivita pink clay mask 2

Although I'm not always the biggest believer in all-natural products, I do appreciate it when a company lives up to its natural branding. You can see that Apivita has made an effort to adhere as much to natural ingredients as possible - other than the usual ingredients one would expect to find in a clay mask (Kaolin, Magnesium Aluminum Silicate, Talc), there are also a number of other ingredients that gave the skin-softening effect I saw when using the mask, in particular the sunflower seed oil and the caprylic/capric triglyceride (derived from coconut oil). I liked that the company made an effort to balance the oil-absorbing and moisturizing properties of the mask - it really made the mask do as it says - clean gently, without stripping the skin.

apivita pink clay mask ingredients

If you want a face mask that does what it says it does, which is 1) clean gently, 2) keep your skin moisturized, and 3) lives up to its natural skincare branding, this is definitely something for you to consider. You get two sachets, but there's a lot of product in one sachet, so you could use each sachet twice.

(Product was sent for review. Review is my complete and honest opinion. I am not affiliated with/compensated by the company.)

Saturday, October 27, 2012

Benefit's New Kits Let You Kick Some Class!

Benefit has come out with two new box sets, both with the most adorable packaging ever! This time, the sets are packaged like textbooks, and have a very quirky, fun vibe about them! In line with the textbook/classroom theme, the copywriting for these sets lets you know that these handy kits will "Kick Some Class".


The first set is How To Look The Best At Anything, and is a Complexion Set of mini-sized products covering all your base makeup needs: primer, concealer, foundation, and powder! The set comes in four colours, Fair, Light, Dark, Medium, and Dark. My set is Light, and it seems to be the right shade for me (NC20 in MAC). I love the packaging for this one, it looks just like a book! Everyone who has seen the set has commented on how cute the packaging is, too.

benefit how to look the best at anything

How To Look The Best At Anything has small sizes of Porefessional, a primer to minimize the appearance of pores, a Hello Flawless Oxygen Wow (the colour of the foundation changes with the set you buy, the Light set has "Cheers to Me" Champagne), a Boi-ing concelaer (once again, the colour differs from set to set, the Light set has 01 and 02), and a Hello Flawlesss powder (in Light the colour is "Me Vain?" Champagne, but the colour is different with each set). Don't you love how the set opens up like a book?

benefit how to look the best at anything 2

Here's a closer look at the products in the set. They're small sizes, but pretty decent, and perfect for travel. They'd also be a great buy if you wanted to get a "try-me" kit before splashing out for the full-sized products.

benefit how to look the best at anything inside

The second set I have to show you is one of the Lip and Cheek Sets. The one I have is Feelin' Dandy, a set based around the Dandelion boxed powder. Other sets available are Sugarlicious (based on Sugarbomb), and Go Tropicoral (with Coralista).

benefit feelin dandy

My Feelin' Dandy set has mini sizes of Posietint, High beam, Dandelion, and one of the recent launches from Beneit, the Ultra Plush Lip gloss in Dandelion.

benefit feelin dandy inside

I really like this set, it's handy, and very nicely colour-coordinated. And it's just so cute! Such a nifty little set.

benefit feelin dandy peek

Would i recommend these sets? Yes if 1) you want these sets for travel, 2) you want a bunch of smaller-size products for trying out, or 3) you want to get these as a gift (seriously, the sets are soo pretty and giftable!). I like sets like these, the idea of having everything I need all in one place is always very appealing to someone with rushed morning routine like me!

(Product was hsent for review. Review is my complete and honest opinion. I am not affiliated with/compensated by the company.)

Vanity Trove Decleor Beauty Event: Sign Up Now!

Vanity Trove is organizing a beauty event with Decleor, and the event is officially open to everyone! The event is happening on 17th November, at The Pines Club, from 11am - 4pm. The cost is $39, but is redeemable for Decleor products.

This event also coincides with the launch of Decleor's Life Radiance II, so you'll also get to learn more about Decleor's newest products and services. The flyer below is pretty detailed, so I don't need to say much more. The closing date for registration is 5 November, so if you're interested, do sign up soon.


(Info is provided by the company. I am not affiliated with/compensated by the company in anyway.)

Thursday, October 25, 2012

Fall/Winter Inspired Smokey Eye (Sort Of): Purple, Green and Bronze

One of the trends to come around for Fall/Winter 2012-2013 has been dubbed the "alternative smokey eye". It basically uses shades other than black (say purple or green), to do an eye look. Like in the photo below.


It isn't really that alternative, and I'd hesitate calling it smokey (to me, a proper textbook-definition smokey eye is that the lid colour should be deeper than the crease shade, but maybe that's just me). But I decided to give it a shot all the same. I'm not a
runway model of course (I know - shocking right? :p NOT.), so I adapted the look a little bit to get the below, which I felt was a little bit more wearable:


The idea was to use similar colours (in this case purple, green, bronze) to get an eye look. For this look I actually drew my three shades from various palettes - some are Sleek palettes, if I recall. I applied the purple on the inner half of the lid, the green on the outer half of the lid, and the bronze on the contour area.

fall inspired eye look 2

To be honest, I'm not sure how I feel about this look. It's a little darker than I normally like my eye makeup to be, but I think it's not that bad in real life. It doesn't look like a black eye at least! And although I've worn purple and green before in a brighter eye look, the darker combination makes it quite season-appropriate.

fall inspired eye look 3

So there you have it, my attempt to get into the Autumn/Winter Season! Is anyone else doing colour for Fall/Winter?

Tuesday, October 23, 2012

Scary Halloween Nails: Bloody Scarred Nails

My last Halloween nail art was nice, but it wasn't really scary. So this time, here's my shot at trying to scare you, LOL!


This was actually quite easy to do, and I imagine anyone could do it, really! For the base, I used a mannequin hands shade (a shade that matches your skin colour closely - it was all the rage back a couple of years ago), Nails Inc Basil Street, one of my all-time favourite polishes ever. I guess you could use any shade for the base, but I wanted a skin-like colour that would stand out against the red blood layered over it.

halloween nails scary nail art 2

For the "blood", I sponged on some red nail polish. In this case I used Eyeko Saucy Polish (also previously blogged about before), and sponged it over my nails for that gradient effect. For this, a rougher sponge with larger pores would actually work better for the "splatter" effect than a finer sponge. I really just used a sponge that I had on hand for polishing shoes. LOL!

halloween nails scary nail art 3

Lastly, I freehanded on the scars with a black polish and a long skinny nail art brush (I got mine from Born Pretty Store, I wrote about them in a previous Chinese New Year nail art post. I didn't really think too much about where I was placing the scars, which is why perhaps the placement isn't always optimal for all nails. But still, it was cool. Lastly, to keep in the scary Halloween theme, I deliberately didn't cleanup the nail polish, so it's supposed to make my fingers look bloody and gross, LOL!

So I guess my nails are all ready for Halloween! Now all I need to do is dress up like a mummy or something, and I'll be ready to go!

Sunday, October 21, 2012

Stuff I Tried And Didn't Like: Face Shop Top Coat

Don't you just hate it when you do your mani and it looks great at first, and then ding it hours later because the topcoat takes too long to dry? It's so frustrating. Well, now you know which topcoat to avoid if you don't want this to happen to you!

Face Shop has a few topcoats, and the offending one I used was the Face It Nails 04 Long Lasting Top Coat. There seems to be two types of top coat with this name (Korean brands, particularly Face Shop, do this sometimes - remember my Face Shop PP409 which had not one but two other polishes with the same name?), a pink one, and a clear one. I used the pink one, shown below.


Source

Anyway, let me proceed to complain about how this lousy topcoat ruined my manicure. The other day, I decided to paint my nails - just a quick, two-coats-and-I'm-done thing. It was awesome, by the way. China Glaze Westside Warrior. Military olive green, deep but not so dark you'd mistake it for black, and a totally chic edgy neutral.

I had used another Face Shop Base Coat, the Lovely Me:ex Nails No.2 Base Coat. I didn't really have all that much to say about it. It was okay-I-guess.


Source

So base coat, two coats of Westside Warrior, and that lousy topcoat. I waited for a few minutes, and then carried on with my day. With other topcoats (Seche, Nails Inc, Sally Hansen Insta-Dri) this hasn't been a problem, but with the Face Shop topcoat, the next thing you know, the surfaces of a couple of my nails got dulled and roughened, just because I was doing things like typing at my computer and getting cash out of my wallet. That was a first sign things were bad. The best topcoats I've used are dry to the touch (though still dentable) within the first half an hour after application, so typically I expect that a good topcoat will allow to do most everyday activities (gently and cautiously), and then be fully dry (or at least no longer dentable unless you use force) an hour or so after that. This one felt like it was soft and dentable the entire day. Look at the photo of my nails below, after one day. You can see all the surface scratches and smudges. And this is already the better looking hand. SIGH.


Anyway, I figured that since I painted my nails in the afternoon, when I went to bed at night, I shouldn't get sheetmarks. Right? Nope, WRONG. I woke up the next morning with more dull nails and a couple of dings. Because, y'know, more than 12 freakin' hours isn't really long enough for a good topcoat to do its job and dry completely. HAH.

So now you know. I tried out a sucky product so you don't have to! Would I recommend this? Well, if you're looking for a topcoat that's still not fully dry and still dentable after 12 hours - be my guest. Else, save the money, and thank me later.

Friday, October 19, 2012

Halloween Nail Art: Purple Glam, Stars and Scars

Halloween is coming up, and I just feel so inspired to do some Halloween nails! I'll be frank - the Halloween nail art that I did last year sucked, so I thought that this year, I had a lot of room for improvement. And this year, I present to you this!


This year, I used the classic Halloween of purple and orange. I used Zoya Yasmeen as a base. I have to tell ya, Zoya Yasmeen is da bomb. I've done a Zoya Yasmeen NOTD back in the day waaay back when, and I still love it!

halloween nail art 3

I then placed these orange stars randomly on my mani, and then I added in the white scars freehand with a long nail art brush.

halloween nail art 4

I actually really like the overall effect, the stars over the purple add a little bit of glam, while the white scars added a little bit of an edge. It's glam but still very much a Halloween manicure! Actually it already looked good enough with just the orange stars, but I figured out that a little edge to the nail look couldn't hurt!

halloween nail art 2

Actually, I don't really celebrate Halloween at all, but I kind of just like utilizing some of the colours for nail art just to go along with the festive mood of the season. Anyone else having fun with Halloween on your nails?

Wednesday, October 17, 2012

Ginvera Green Tea Marvel Gel: Exfoliation Made Fun

Ginvera's flagship product, the Green Tea Marvel Gel, has been making waves in Asia for awhile now. And finally, it's coming to the West! First stop, UK, courtesy of Janirio, the distributor for Ginvera in the UK!

Since a much beloved Asian product is slowly entering Western markets, I thought it's high time I reviewed it! Honestly I've been meaning to do this for awhile, I just haven't got around to doing it!


The Ginvera Green Tea Marvel Gel is a green, clear gel. It's kinda odd looking at first (how many skincare products do you know that are green in colour?), but it works much like any other exfoliating gel: you take some of the gel, massage it around your skin, and watch the product ball up and take little bits of skin with it.

ginvera green tea marvel gel

You see that? Those white balls are a combination of balled up product and skin. Actually, the product works using AHA (alpha hydroxyl acid), that helps to slough off the dead skin. It's a mainstay in many a skincare product, but there's definitely an element of novelty in seeing those white balls come off with the Marvel Gel. You then rinse it off with water, and you're done!

ginvera green tea marvel gel after

Anyway, what I like about the Ginvera Marvel Gel as compared to other similar products is that it doesn't leave as much residue on your skin. Some brands leave behind this strange residue that's almost plastic-y (must be bad formulation using too much carbomer to thicken the product to gel form), but this doesn't. So that's a good thing.

ginvera green tea marvel gel box

If you're in Asia, you'll already know where to get this from. If you're in the UK, you can get it at Janirio, for £22.00 (including P&P). The Ginvera UK facebook page is also run by them.

(Product was sent for review. Review is my complete and honest opinion. I am not affiliated with/compensated by the company.)

Monday, October 15, 2012

Pink and White Gradient BCA Nails

So after my first Breast Cancer Awareness month manicure, I decided to do a second BCA mani! This time, I used the same pink and white colour scheme, but I used a bit of glitter as well! And of course, the pink ribbon is there on the accent nail.


Although this mani is simple, I actually used a total of four different polishes. For the white and pink gradient, I used Wet n' Wild White (duh), while the pink was RBL Lulu, a very pretty pastel pink of the BCA variety.

breast cancer awareness nail art 1

The pink ribbon is Wet n' Wild Quartz of Course, and I freehanded the ribbon again this time. And then I topped that with OPI Princesses Rule! which actually is tiny glitter in a base that has a slight tinge of pinky sheerness. I kinda overestimated how sheer the polish was, and when I applied it over my mani it actually made everything look pinker. Oops.

breast cancer awareness nail art 2

So that's my second BCA mani! Hope you guys like it! Stay healthy and pretty everyone, and take care of your health! You can read up further on breasts cancer here, and there are lots of other resources available too. Breast cancer is the 5th top cause of deaths, so if you're in the at-risk age group (50 to 74), the best way to detect breast cancer is to get a mammogram once every 2 years.

Saturday, October 13, 2012

BellaBox October: Happy Birthday to Bella Box!

Happy Birthday Bellabox! October is the anniversary of Bellabox, and so I was holding my breath for this month's Bellabox - after all, a birthday beauty box should be a good one right? Well, let's get to it without further ado, and find out!


This month's Bellabox is perhaps smaller than what I'm used to (for the price, you seriously get some quite awesome products and samples with Bellabox), but given the price, I still think it's not too bad. I got a lot of Nuxe Skincare samples, so let's start with those:

bellabox october nuxe skincare

I got sample sizes of the Nuxe Body 24hr Moisturizing Body Lotion, Nuxe Reve de Miela Face and Body Ultra-Rich Cleansing Gel, and Nuxe Huile Prodigieuse® Multi-Usage Dry Oil. Not too bad, right? THese are not packet samples (thank goodness), so although they are small tubes they are decent. I'm interested to see how the Dry Oil will work out, as I've never ever thought I'd need such a product (it is really hot, humid, and wet out here!), but I'd love to see what it can do.

Now, for the non-Nuxe stuff:

bellabox october others

I got a sample of Bioderma Sensibio H2O, a micellar cleanser (these seem to be the all the rage recently), which really isn't too bad - I actually quite like it when I tried it. I also got a sample of Guerlain's La Petite Robe Noire, a very floral fragrance that is quite girly. For a Guerlain perfume (we're talking the makers of Jicky, Chamade, Shalimar and Samsara here), it's very sweet, and young-smelling, and a tad less of a classic compared to some of its forebears. It's still nice, though, and in my opinion Guerlain tends to be one of the better mainstream department store perfume brands. Man, I could go on about perfume and perfume notes all day. But you guys probably don't want to know about my perfume obsession that lasted for a few years until I found my signature scent. So let's move on.

Lastly, I also got the cute little Bellabox compact mirror. I like it - it's more useful than the previous Bellabox gift (a pen), and definitely something I could use while travelling or on the move.

So this month's Bellabox to me? Not its greatest, but it's not too shabby either. For the price, you could get worse.

(Product was sent for review. Review is my complete and honest opinion. I am not affiliated with/compensated by the company.)

Thursday, October 11, 2012

Fade to Black Gradient Manicure

Look! Gradient nails! And with three colours, too! I don't know about you, but I recently started experimenting with making gradient nails with a sponge, and I'm loving it! For these nails, I did a gradient with three - yes three! - shades. I think this is a first for me, LOL. I used Wet n' Wild White, Wet n' Wild Black, and Essie Chinchilly for the grey.


I first painted my nails with Wet n' Wild White as a base, then I took a sponge (I just use whatever I can get my hands on - I use the sponges that I have at home to wash dishes), and did three stripes of paint in each colour next to each other on the sponge. Then I transferred the polish from the sponge to my nail. I couldn't figure out how to get rid of the "sponge marks" on my mani. Maybe I should have used more polish on the sponge, or a different type of sponge? Anyway, when I figure it out, I'll let you guys know.

gradient manicure black grey white 1

The trick to this, I think, is to blend the polishes on the sponge before transferring them to the nail. Also, I think it helps to use polished that are opaque and give good coverage.

The downside to this is that you get polish all over your cuticles and skin around the nail, and cleanup can be a pain. Especially if, like me, you used black or a dark shade, then it's quite hard to remove all that crap that gets stuck at the base of your nails. But the end effect is so cool, I think it's worth it!

gradient manicure black grey white 2

So ta-da, my gradient manicure! I'm really loving how this looks, despite the pain it was to clean up, it has a very moody-chic vibe to it.

Tuesday, October 9, 2012

Gold and Brown Autumn Leaves Konad

Since we're leaving the summer season, I figure I might as well start getting my Fall on. Thus, this konad of autumn leaves! Seriously, it's been a looong time since I last konaded, so I was all like, "OMG I hope I still haz my konading skillz" when I did this. Fortunately it wasn't too bad at all, considering the last time I konaded was this holographic zebra stripes konad with GOSH Holographic, a few month's back.


For the base I used Nails Inc Belgravia. It's a nice brown shade with the slightest shimmer, and very chic and understated. You gotta love browns like these - some browns look like crap on me (pun totally intended), but this one doesn't. Look ma, no poopy hands! Just a very classic shade. I think I did have a previous NOTD up on my blog from waaay back when, and I loved it then and still love it now, so I guess it has stood the test of time.

autumn leaf konad 1

For the leaves I used Orly Luxe and the konad plate I used was M77. It isn't strictly a falling-leaves kind of design (in fact, it kinda looks like palm leaves? more than anything else), I know, but I felt like when paired with the colour scheme, it worked for me.

I don't know about you, but a mani like this just makes me want to sing, "The falling leeaavessss, Drift by my windooooowww"! Wait, some of you don't know the song? Aw shucks...I can't be that old now, can I? *Crickets chirp*

autumn leaf konad 2

Okay. Anyway, I guess I'd better end this post before I make myself sound any older than I already am. While this look doesn't really break any major boundaries, I still feel like its something I could wear for a discreet konad, since it's not too flashy.

Sunday, October 7, 2012

A Tale of Two Products: Neutrogena Deep Clean Revitalising PinkGrapefruit Ultra Foam Cleanser and Vaseline UV Whitening Body Lotion

Today, I have not one, but two skincare products to review for you! Yay!

The first product I have to review is the Neutrogena Deep Clean Revitalising Pink Grapefruit Ultra Foam Cleanser. Foam cleansers are such a trend nowadays. It all started with the Biore Marshmallow Whip Facial Wash, then other brands quickly followed suit. The next thing you know, it's like foaming cleanser this, foaming cleanser that...you get the idea. Anyway, let's try the Neutrogena version and see how it stacks up.


The first thing I noticed when I pumped out the cleanser from the bottle was the smell. I mean, I'm not really one to comment much on fragrance in my skincare or makeup products, but man, this totally hit me in that "KAPOW!!!" way I thought only existed in comic strips. The smell is very strong, and it smells like those scented dish soap I use to clean my plates and bowls! Sheesh Neutrogena, I know you're going for zesty grapefruit, but really, there's no need. My olfactory capabilities are all intact, thanks. You smell like a 13-year-old trying on perfume for the first time!

Neutrogena Deep Clean Revitalising Pink Grapefruit Ultra Foam Cleanser pump

Anyway, scent aside, I actually didn't mind this product. It foams decently out of the pump, although the foam isn't as fine or as dense as the Biore version. The bubbles in the foam are larger. But it works. It cleans my skin and doesn't leave it feeling dry or tight. I would use this.

Next, we have the Vaseline UV Whitening Body Lotion. This, as the name implies, caters to the masses of girls out there who want fairer skin. It claims to contain Vitamin B3 to help whiten your skin.

Vaseline UV Whitening Body Lotion bottle

I have to admit, I haven't used this long enough to comment on the whitening effect, but it's great as a moisturizer. I'm a longtime fan of Vaseline moisturizers, so this is right up my alley. I'm not gonna complain!

Vaseline UV Whitening Body Lotion

Anyway, there you go, your fellow skincare-usin', makeup-applyin', product-cravin' friendly blogger is working overtime to bring you two(!) new reviews in one day. If any of these products sounds like something you would use, do check them out - they're cheap, cheery, and they work.

(Product was hsent for review. Review is my complete and honest opinion. I am not affiliated with/compensated by the company.)

Friday, October 5, 2012

Ozotic Beam 905: Welcome to Rainbow Glitter Paradise!

Sooo today I have Ozotic Beam 905 nail polish, and it is a totally awesmoe rainbow glitterbomb - but in a good way! It's essentially small tiny rainbow microglitter in a clear base. As such, it's rather sheer, but that makes it great for layering!

I've tried it out with a range of colours, and the conclusion I've come to is that it really looks better over darker shades than lighter ones. Although if you wear it over lighter ones, it's cool too! But just so you know what I mean, here it is over the ever-classic black:


Whoa mama, take a look at that! It's over a plain ol' black creme, so all that princess-glitter-tiara-sparkliness you see is all due to Beam 905. The glitter in there is slightly glass-flecked and multicoloured - I see a range of colours, including blue, green, gold (I think), and others...it's kinda hard to say. The colour shifts a little depending on how the light hits your nails.

But of course you're not going to layer it over just black, so I've swatched it over a bunch of other shades (mostly dark shades) for you to see. I've also done white, just so you get an idea of how it looks over a lighter shade (and now you see why I said it looks better over darker shades, right?):

ozotic beam 905 swatches

These are swatches over white, green, blue, and red. I personally like it best over blue or blue-based colours (e.g. purple, navy, etc), but I guess it would really look kickass over anything! I think it would also be great as a French Manicure topper, just to add a little more interest to the look.

Application was good - the polish has a slightly thicker consistency, on par with other glitter-suspended type polishes. I really have no complaints - the glitter density is good, the brush shape and size were just right. Me likey. This is my first Ozotic, and if all Ozotics are like this, I think I'd add the brand to my "worth spending money on" list!

You can buy Ozotic polish from Star Trinkets and of course the Picture Polish site.

(Product was sent for review. Review is my complete and honest opinion. I am not affiliated with/compensated by the company.)

Thursday, October 4, 2012

Pulling For A Cause: Do Your Brows, And Your Bit For Charity!

Remember my BCA Manicure? Well it's October (aka Breast Cancer Awareness Month), so along with the nail art, here's how you can do your bit for charity, and look good at the same time, with Pulling For A Cause!



Date: Saturday 6 October 2012
Time: 10am - 6pm
Venue: *SCAPE PLAYSPACE
(SCAPE, 2 Orchard Link, Singapore 237978)

So what exactly is this? At Pulling For A Cause, get your eyebrows all day in exchange for a donation to the Singapore Cancer Society. Threading your eyebrows takes 10 minutes. So does a breast self-examination.

Every year, in Singapore, 1400 women are diagnosed with breast cancer and more than 300 die. So despite the girly-frilly pink often associated with BCA promotions, the disease itself is no joke.

I personally love the idea - I totally need to get my brows done anyway, and it's good to know that I can donate to charity at the same time! Talk about win-win!

Visit the Pulling For A Cause website at http://pullingforacause.sg.

Wednesday, October 3, 2012

Vanity Trove October: The Latest and Greatest

Vanity Trove has been advertising it's October Trove as a big and bold one, and here it finally is! Although for some reason I had the impression that it would contain more makeup than skincare items, you actually get both.


First, let's look at the makeup. Some people got a lipstick, I got this Bourjois Queen Atitude Kajal Kohl. It's a full-sized product, so I'm happy about getting this! It's also a new launch by Bourjois for October, so you really are getting a hot new product in this month's Trove.

vanity trove october bourjois kohl

The next item is also a standout - you get a full-sized tube of Audrey Christian Venetrim. This is a cream for those who suffer from tired, sore legs or who have vein concerns. I guess this one really targets ladies who've had to walk a little farther in life than I have, since vein issues aren't my concern right now. (I'm still battling my teenage pimples well into my twenties, for crying out loud - life is so unfair!) I've never heard of the brand up to this point, so this is a great "try me" introduction to the brand.

vanity trove october venetrim cream

I also got a set of VMV Hypoallergenics Hydra Balance Cleanser & Moisturizer for Combination Skin Type. Also another new brand to me, but this brand is looking good. The tubes are travel-sized but not too small, so I'm happy.

vanity trove october vmv hypoallergenics

Lastly, we have smaller samples and other things. I got tiny trial sizes of DHC Olive Skincare samples, which is a sachet of olive and a small bar of soap, as well as an Bamboo Essence of Nature Sap Patch, which is a weight-loss product. Weight loss products aren't really of interest to me, not because I don't think I need to lose weight (trust me, one of my life goals is to get back to my weight UN my University days), but because I'm a firm believer in losing weight by exercise and healthy eating (or in my case, healthier eating, but whatever, any improvement is a good thing right?). But no harm done with these products either, really.

vanity trove october other samples

So there you have it - this month's upcoming Vanity Trove! Looking around at other blogs, the product mix is similar. You get two full-sized products in this Trove, so if the mix of products interests you, this is worth checking out.

(Product was sent for review. Review is my complete and honest opinion. I am not affiliated with/compensated by the company.)