Benefit Gimme Brow Swatches and Quick Review

Benefit Cosmetics will launch Gimme Brow, its latest brow product, in October. But until then, I thought I'd show you guys a few quick sneak peeks! Gimme Brow is meant to give you fuller brows with volume, so if you like a bit of drama for your brows, then this product is a good one.

Benefit's Gimme Brow: A brow mascara to give your lashes colour and volume!

Gimme Brow is essentially a brow mascara, a product which is quite popular in the West. As you might guess, it naturally comes in mascara-like packaging - there is a small tube, and a small, sharp mascara-like brush and wand for application.


Benefit's Gimme Brow comes with a mascara-like tube and brush packaging.

Erabelle: My Brow Overhaul!

Few things define and shape the face like your brows. And yet, the brows are often an overlooked part of the face. I guess it's because brows aren't like eyeshadow or nail polish, where there's a new colour coming out every week. But I was very humbled to remember how important basics are when I visited Erabelle.

Erabelle is the local equivalent of Anastasia, in that the focus is on beautiful, well-sculpted brows, with a focus on looking natural. Like Anastasia, Erabelle too has also branched out into other beauty products (Erabelle also sells BB cream), but for today, I'm just focusing on the brows.


I was first given a short introduction to some of the key Erabelle products needed to groom your own brows for the DIY girls. This includes their Brie tweezers, with a polymer tip that pinches the skin much less than a traditional metal tip; brow scissors, which are specially shaped to make trimming along the curve of the brow easier, and which also comes from Switzerland. These implements are really precise - the manufacturers Erabelle sources from also sell their products to the Swiss watch makers and electronics manufacturers, where high precision is required. So despite these being simple tools, the technology behind them is formidable. And these are only sold through Erabelle within the region - to get them elsewhere in Asia, you'll have to fly to Japan.


Erabelle also has a brow pencil, of course, and there are 5 shades to choose from. Dark Brown is the most popular, but I opted for grey. These pencils are pretty good - I wore them out for a day and they didn't move.

Last, but not least, are the services. Erabelle provides upmarket brow shaping services. It so happened that I hadn't been taking care of my brows much in the past few weeks (you know, real life gets in the way), so I was totally having these bushmen brows coming in. And after, I had pretty brows! One of my brows tends to be a bit higher than the other, so I was pleasantly surprised to see that they evened out my brows and made them look more symmetrical too!

Here's the before and after.


Erabelle also offers semi-permanent brow colour, for those with little in the way of natural hair. While my bushman self probably won't ever need such services, I got to watch a short demonstration of their soft stroke technique, which basically consists of short, gentle strokes that apply the colour bit by bit in a way that resembles hair and gives a more natural appearance. All semi-permanent colours used are FDA approved, and the equipment used is from Germany, so despite the kimono-clad staff, the technology is actually all the latest and greatest from the West. Erabelle also offers semi-permanent lip colour for other girls who are interested.


One of the things I really appreciated about Erabelle was the individually themed rooms, which are geared towards guests getting body/face care treatments. I always love it when a store has beautiful decor. The rooms are individually themed - there's a Western-themed one, a Japanese-themed one, and even a more utilitarian one for the boys.


So, if you're looking for a way to experience the Erabelle treatmenwitt a fraction of the cost, this August's Vanity Trove has a 50% off voucher, so if you're a Vanity Trove subscriber, keep your eyes peeled for the discount!


(With Michelle at the event)
(Product and services provided for review. Review is my complete and honest opinion. I am not affiliated with/compensated by the company.)

Jelly Pong Pong Brazilian Sun Bronzer and Wide Awake Palette

Think of cutesy makeup, and Jelly Pong Pong immediately comes to mind. I swear, the brand finds a cute way to package even the most mundane of products, and their recently-released Lavish Gift Bags are no exception to the rule.

There are two Gift Bags, Gift Bag A and Gift Bag B. In my last post, I looked at some of the Gift Bag products, namely, the Jelly Flush cheek stain and Lip Frosting. Today, I'm completing my peek into the items by featuring the Brazilian Sun Bronzer, and the Wide Awake Palette.

Okay now, let's gush at the packaging together! Ahhh, so cute! *Happy squeals* However, unlike the previous products featured which smelled of sweet edibles, these two products don't have any fragrances added to them.



The Brazilian Sun Bronzer is probably one of the cutest-packaged bronzers I've seen in my entire life. To be sure, the huge packaging is kinda clunky and not very travel-friendly, but it's just so cute. I was wondering why the bronzer needed such a large box, and when I opened the lid, I was quite surprised to see this:



My first reaction was - what is that? There's a flower in my bronzer! But it's not a flower. It's actually a powder puff for the bronzer, but it has the cutest flower top ever.



So what about the bronzer itself? The bronzer pan is glued to the bottom of the entire container, and it's a pretty big pan of bronzer. Since it's lodged inside the container, though, you'll have to use either the puff, or your own bronzer brush to apply the powder.

The colour of the bronzer is also very pretty. It's a medium brown, that doesn't run orangey or look too brash. It's actually quite wearable. It has some shimmer, so this probably won't be your best choice for contouring.



Here's a swatch of the Brazilian Sun bronzer, applied perhaps a bit more heavily than a normal person might apply. On me, it looks a little ruddy, so I'm actually considering using this as a blush colour, in addition to being a bronzer.



The last item that I have to cover is the Wide Awake Palette. This is also a very pretty palette. The packaging is clad in paper, though, so you wouldn't want to put this on your sink, or anywhere it would get wet.



The packaging is so pretty! I love the flower and bird illustrations on the cover.



The Wide Awake Palette consists of an illuminating cream, which is a cream highlighter with a beige colour, a soft lemon yellow highlighting cream, and an eyebrow sculptor, which consists of a trio of eyeshadow powders.



Here's a close-up shot of the products in the palette.



I've swatched the two cream highlighters side by side. Honestly, on my skin, they both turn kind of off-white and look quite similar. The good thing about the creams is that there isn't any discernable shimmer, and both creams are good for highlighting the high points of the face, or even acting as a concealer or brightener for the skin.



Here are swatches of the eyebrow sculptor powders. There is a good gradation of powder colours in the set, consisting of a tan beige colour, a medium warm brown, and a lovely neutral dark brown. A pretty wide array of shades are covered with the colours in this palette. The powders are also actually very soft and pigmented. I actually kind of think they could double up as eyeshadows in a pinch.



Would I recommend these products? I love the bronzer and would recommend it, cute flower puff and all. The palette is also very useful with its variety of creams and shades, but I wouldn't recommend it if you are planning to bring it along for travel. But if you are planning to use it at home, or if you want something with pretty packaging, this would be a good choice to check out.

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