Review: Benefit Love Potions

[Products are not sponsored and all reviews are honest opinions!]

Around two weeks ago, I bought the Benefit Love Potions from Sephora! It was so worth it, 10 sample sized products retailing for S$58! The packaging was extra cute and I couldn't resist~ 

The set contains:

- 0.25 oz "That Gal" Brightening Face Primer
- 0.25 oz The POREfessional
- 0.1 oz It's Potent Eye Cream
- 0.08 oz High Beam in Luminescent
- 0.08 oz Watt's Up
- 0.08 oz Posietint in Poppy Pink
- 0.08 oz Stay Don't Stray in Light/Medium
- 0.14 oz BADgal Lash Mascara
- 0.1 oz Hoola Bronzing Powder
- 0.22 oz Ultra Plush 
- Hoola Lip Gloss 

(Taken from Sephora website)

What attracted me most were: High Beam in Luminescent, Posietint in Poppy Pink, BADgal Lash Mascara and Hoola Bronzing Powder. 

I've really been trying to control myself by not getting the full size of these products cause: 1) they are pretty expensive, 2) I wasn't 100% sure if I would enjoy them or 3) able to finish using the whole bottle. There are way too many unused products sitting in my make-up cabinet that I feel super bad about cause I could've bought something else with the same amount of money! #brokegirlproblems

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So let's start off with my little review! :)

PRIMERS:

1. "That Gal" Brightening Face Primer (2/5)

(Credits: Benefit)

This is a new product for me. I've never seen/heard reviews about this product before! So I gave it a try for a few days~ I just use it all over my cheeks and brow bone area, since it's really quite brightening as the name suggests. Hahaha. And I don't want to have a pink hue all over my face. 

My verdict is that, it doesn't give me anything extra that made me go wow? Maybe cause I'm not looking for any brightening factor for my face since my concerns are mostly surrounding my hyperpigmentation/blemishes/oiliness. But if you are looking for brightening primers more than mattifying, you can give this a try :)

2. The POREfessional: (4.5/5)

(Credits: Benefit)

This is not a new product for me cause I have another tube at home, but I can safely say this is my favourite primer! It works really well to cover up my pores for a smooth base before foundation. Whenever I need an extra guarantee for my makeup to look extra flawless, I'll reach for this.

I use it two ways: 
1) Place a few dots around my T-zone area, inner cheeks and chin. Smooth them out and let it set before putting foundation. 
2) I mix a 1:1 ratio of POREfessional:Foundation of choice, mix well and apply it all over my face. 

It also helps my make up to stay longer than they do alone! :)

3. It's Potent Eye Cream: (3/5)

I've been using this on and off for the past week. My area of troubles do not really include my eyes, I don't have a problem with eye bags or super dark eye circles (yay for small eyes!), so I am really lazy when it comes to eye creams. 

However, I like the consistency of this eye cream. It's moisturising yet not too thick/creamy, it is lightweight and I feel like it gives the moisture that my under eye needs :) The packaging though is super cute!! And this portable size is perfect for me to bring for travelling~

I like it but not enough for me to purchase a full sized product cause I feel like I can do without it in my skincare routine!

HIGHLIGHTERS:

4. High Beam in Luminescent: (5/5)

This has been on the top of my shopping list for months. When I saw Jen/frmheadtotoe (my favourite beauty blogger/guru, ever) raving about it, I really really really had the urge to run out to Sephora to get this! So imagine how glad I was to be able to try it out without committing to a full sized bottle :D

It definitely did not disappoint me! I love the slight glow it gives my face. Some people like their faces matte, but I really love a good dewy glow cause it makes me look more alive, like my cheeks are bouncy, and my face not flat~ Haha. I just dot a few dots on the high points of my cheeks and blend it out using my fingers. I will skip putting any powder over this as it dries completely without any tackiness/wetness. 

If you're scared of looking like a disco ball, don't worry, the glow is subtle, yet it delivers the highlight effect that I was looking for. Perfect!

I'm in love with this, will definitely get the full sized product!

5. Watt's Up: (5/5)

I really enjoyed this product! It came as a surprise cause I initially really didn't know the purpose of this stick.. Hahaha. But I was pleasantly surprised when I tried it on. As opposed to High Beam's pinky glow, this was more of golden/healthy highlight colour, and I can see how awesome it will look on people with yellow undertone or a tanner skin colour. 

It looks great even on my skin :D I look very sun-kissed, and it is definitely something different in a good way. I am super enjoying this product! Even more than I imagined :)

TINTS/EYE PRIMER:

6. Stay Don't Stray in Light/Medium: (2/5)

As I've said before, I have my Holy Grail UD Original Primer Potion and I've been using that since I started using make up regularly 4 years back. I've never tried any other primers, even though I have the NYX Primer, the Too Faced Shadow Insurance and now, the Benefit Stay Don't Stray in Light/Medium.

This primer came out super thick!! It felt like a concealer consistency, and it evens out my eyelid colour. It acted as a good, clean base for my shadows to go on smoothly. However, because my eyelids are extremely oily, my shadows still creased by the end of the day :( 

7. Posietint in Poppy Pink: (4.5/5)

(Credits: Benefit)

This was another product that has been in my shopping list! I've heard about the original Benetint for years but somehow the red didn't really make me wanna buy it. But, the Posietint is definitely up my alley! I'm a sucker for anything (like I mean anything) pink, so I really wanted to try it out. 

As a lip tint, it's a little on the drying side. So it's not really my favourite product to put on the lips, cause I'm anal about my lips drying with every breath that I take hahaha. However, it is perfect to be used to create a gradient lip effect before sealing it with a lip balm!

As a cheek tint, I LOVE LOVE THIS COLOUR! It gives the perfect rosy hue on my cheeks and same as the High Beam, it dries completely without any tackiness/wetness. It's like as if I was blushing naturally :) The same way I use the High Beam, I dot it around my cheeks before blending out with my fingers. Fuss-free and no brushes needed (yay). However, it dries really fast so you gotta be quick with the blending.

Another plus point is that.. The posietint stays like no other. It has a super good staying power! I was under the hot sun for almost 4 hours today and it didn't budge.. AT ALL. So I guess you gotta make sure you're applying your blush at the right places or it'll be quite a tough one to remove. 

!!! Amazing right? I was really shocked at how good the staying power was! I had two pink stripes on my hand with me throughout the day and they disappeared slowly.. Haha.

8. BADgal Lash Mascara: (3.5/5)

(Credits: Benefit)

I love mascaras! And I was attracted to this one cause of the brush. My lashes are not short, but they are pretty sparse, so I need volume more than length. Thus I tend to look for thick brushes as opposed to plastic ones like the one in They're Real Mascara (which I've learnt to LOVE, more on that another post ^^) 

(In case you're wondering, yes, my bottom lashes defied gravity and grew upwards)

This one didn't disappoint me though, it really volumise my lashes, however the brush is really a bummer cause it is so difficult to work with, especially for my inner and outer lashes :( So if I really had to choose, I'd skip this and stick to my Japanese mascaras.. Since I guess the brushes are made smaller and friendlier for asian eyes like mine hahaha.

9. Ultra Plush Hoola Lip Gloss: (3.5/5)

I really like this lip gloss. The texture is just nice, not too sticky yet it gives enough shine for that glossy look :) I was quite intimidated when I saw the colour at first, however when blended out it looks really nice, definitely a go-to nude lip gloss. The smell is super good too! I love sweet smelling glosses~ 

10. Hoola Bronzing Powder: (4.5/5)

I am a huge fan of Benefit's Boxed Powders. And I've been looking for a perfect matte bronzer for my skin tone to contour my nose and jawline! I've heard good reviews about the Hoola Bronzer and boy it did not disappoint. 

I've tried many kinds of bronzers, they are either: too dark, too red, too orange, too shimmery, or whatever it was but it just won't match my skin tone! And they look horrible no matter how much time I spend blending them down my jawlines :( It will still look a super stark brown as compared to my skin, and it really looks bad especially when I tie my hair up and my sister went: "Why is your jawline black :O"

But with Hoola, I can really blend it down to the colour that I want~~

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Overall, this is definitely a super good buy! Each product will work out to be about $5.80, and when actual prices ranges from around $45 onwards, I'd say $5.80 is a pretty good price to pay to try out the products :) Furthermore, the packaging are to-die-for and they are also great for Christmas presents!!!!

So, are you planning to get the Love Potions? Let us know! 

xx,
Flo♡

Review: Solone Perfect Drawing Eyeliner

[Products are not sponsored and all reviews are honest opinions!]

This buy was a total accident.

Flo and I were hanging out at Sasa and I swatched a random eyeliner. 

That night, after I washed my hands and bathed, IT WAS STILL THERE.

And I went on a mission to find it, 

Was majorly happy when I found it haha 

I think it was the pretty packaging!

So I'm constantly on this lookout for pencil eyeliners to line my tightline 

When I lined it, it tends to touch my waterline and smudge on the lower lid. 

PANDA ALERT. Was very excited to find one that that stayed on my hand even after I bathed.

So apparently it says that the cap is topped with Swarovski Crystal. It doesn't add to my buy/no buy factors but anything shiny is always pretty. 

It also comes with a handy pink sharperner! That's pretty neat. 

Apparently, it dries within 10 seconds , is water proof and oil resistant which means you won't get any smudges whatever!

Sounds pretty much like any liners out there that promises these conditions!

So this is ONE stroke and I'm absolutely amazed by the pigment. 

I decided to try it with my other liners and do a smudge test.

I grabbed a few liners that I own and swatch it together with Solone one.

SMUDGE TEST

After ten minutes,

I rubbed all four liners at once with my thumb.

I don't know what results I was expecting but Dollywink and Étude House failed the test haha Surprisingly, NYX also held up to the smudge test!

AND SOLONE STOOD UP TO IT!

WATER TEST

So I decided to re-line the Dollywink and Etude House and do another test!

I used Mama Lemon dishwasher and simply used water to rinse it off. I just pump the soap on it and run it under the water and just lightly use my fingers to wash off the suds.

As you can see, Dollywink, NYX and Étude House failed the test BUT SOLONE IS SOME POWERFUL STUFF. But I'm impressed that Dollywink is not fully removed as well haha

Now for the final test- OIL TEST

Because everything was almost gone, I cleansed my hand with make up remover and re-line all four liners and waited 10 minutes. Then I took my L'oreal Mythic Oil for hair and rubbed it across. 

Do note that I rubbed it back and forth for about four times.

EVERYTHING WAS ALMOST GONE BUT LOOK AT SOLONE.

the smudging around it was caused by Étude house, which in my opinion, smudged the most.

FYI, I did concentrate on just Solone with the oil and rubbed it but really, aside from a little disappearance, it was not budging.

it was going strong and officially passed all my tests. So I'm gonna put it to a full day wear!

//Update

So I decided to out it to test with a minimum of 12 hours eye wear. 

I put it on at 710am so this is my freshly-applied eye 

(Sacrificing my look here hahaha but just to show you guys how the tightline looks when I first applied it and waited 5 mins for it to dry). I drew on my liquid liner as per normal after lining my tightline.

Had to rush with the mad traffic to get to Tanjong Pagar for staff meeting at 9am and then walked under the sweltering sun to get to the office at 1230pm. So this how it stood up.

Ok, my eye area look pretty good. Take note I walked under the sweltering hot sun for 15 minutes and my skin is like an oil factory. Aside from a little flaking, my liner was going strong! 

And finally at 7pm! 

As you can see, there was a little flaking off but it did not smudge on me the entire 12 full hours. I did not retouch it throughout. My oily skin kinda made my liquid liner flake off even.

For $14.90, the staying power of this eyeliner was kicking ass compared to a lot of better brands? It stayed up to its promises and it's at a really affordable price. So far, I know this product can be found at Sasa only. 

It's a definite re-purchase for me. That's for sure!

Have you tried this brand before?

Pea

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Review: Catrice Lipstick + Lipliner + Eyeshadow Quad

[Products are not sponsored and all reviews are honest opinions!]

Hello! Recently, Pea introduced me to Catrice, and we're both hooked to finding out more about this brand cause it is relatively cheap (and they also look very promising) for drugstore products in Singapore.

She has done a little review on the blushes that she got, which can be found here. And now I'll be doing a little review on the lipsticks and eyeshadow quad! :)

I immediately reached out to the lipstick section cause I was desperately looking for a lip colour similar to Venom from Urban Decay Revolution Lipstick range! It is a deep burgundy/purplish colour with a little sheen and I really wanted to get a dupe for it~

This is the Catrice Ultimate Colour in 140 Pinker Bell, priced at S$7.90. An extremely bright fuschia colour with a satin close to shimmery finish.

Pea and I immediately thought to ourselves that this is my kind of colour! Very bright and in-your-face, and it really did remind me of Venom, just in a brighter shade. I was pretty bent on getting this colour already cause either way I'll use it. Then I found the lip liners, and picked the (of course) burgundy colour:

This is the Catrice Precision Lip Liner in 060 Very Berry, priced at S$4.90. A dark purple colour, really close to what I was looking for but without the shine!

1. Lipstick in 140 Pinker-Bell

2. Lipstick in 140 Pinker-Bell smudged out

♡ 3. Lipliner in 060 Very Berry + Lipstick in 140 Pinker-Bell ♡

4. Lipliner in 060 Very Berry

My favourite way of wearing it is of course by mixing the lip liner and lipstick together!! :D

I start by filling my whole lips with the lipliner in 060 Very Berry, and then layer the lipstick in 140 Pinker-Bell on top. Fairly easy, but creates the best burgundy colour ever. Haha.

This is the Catrice Ultimate Colour Lipstick in 250 Matt About Pink, priced at S$7.90. Just like the name, it is a matte creamy coral-pink. 

It can be quite difficult to wear if your lips are chapped (like mine), but a little lip exfoliation will help create a smoother base for this lipstick to go on easily. Hehe.

The thing about these lipsticks and lipliner is that they have superb pigmentation, very affordable, goes on smoothly upon application and it doesn't dry out my lips (important!!). However, the staying power isn't as good as expected, it requires quite a bit of re-application throughout the day. But I am not complaining, cause I'd rather have to reapply than have them dry out my lips like no other! 

Just a little tip, remove all excess + dried out lip colour on the lips before re-applying :)

I also picked up an eyeshadow quad, and can I just say how much I really like the whole acrylic packaging. It's so heavy duty and clicks when I close the quad. Makes me feel very secure. Hahaha.

This is the Catrice Absolute Eye Colour in 040 Never Let Me Go!, priced at S$8.90. Consists of 4 super wearable colours - my kind of colours again. Haha, I always stick to the browns when it comes to eyeshadows cause those are my safe colours.

1. A very basic champagne, shimmery, highlight colour

2. Peach based shadow with flecks of gold glitters

3. A dark taupe with very fine silver glitters

4. Dark brown colour with fine gold glitters

Did a simple eye look with the quad:

(pardon my unruly brows T_T)

Dab colour 2 evenly all over double eyelid crease. Then blend colour 3 at the outer half of the crease inwards to the center of eyelids. Add colour 4 along the outer third lashline, blend blend blend! And then highlight the inner third of eyelids and below the brow bone. I also added colour 3 to the outer half of my lower lashes. Finish up with eyeliner and mascara! :)

The colours 3 and 4 are of superb quality! Very buttery and pigmented with minimum fallouts considering that they are pretty dark colours. However, I was quite disappointed with colours 1 and 2, cause it came off a bit chalky, and I had to swirl a few times before I could get a good swatch/colour payoff. Yet, colour 2 happens to be my favourite colour in the quad cause it's just so pretty and glittery! It works great as a single colour on the lid, adds that extra sparkle when you blink ;)

So overall, I'm really quite enjoying Catrice products and I wanna buy moreeeeee!!! Have any of you tried their products before? Share with us how you feel ^^

Catrice can be found in selected Guardian outlets: Serangoon Nex, IMM, City Link, Takashimaya, Vicocity, Bugis and Toa Payoh.

xx.

Flo♡

Review: Catrice Defining Blush

[Products are not sponsored and all reviews are honest opinions!]

Today I will reviewing a relatively new brand in Singapore!

Catrice is a relatively new brand in Singapore and I love what I've tried out so far.

I've converted Flo into a true fan.

So these are the 6 colors. [I bought 4, 5 & 6]

 1. Its a really light peachy/coral color with very subtle shimmer. You can dab it on as a highlighter!

2. This is a deep mauve brick color and I think it's a little too dark for my skin tone, but otherwise, its a beautiful color.

3. Toffee Fairy is just a nice brown that is very buildable for contouring or bronzer and it works because there is no glitter/shimmer in it!

4. This is like a everyday light plum color and totally my kind of color. 

5. I wonder why I picked this up because I don't really wear coral much but look at the intensity!! Its a way more intense version of Apropos Apricot and it does not have the shimmer

6. My favourite out of the lot. I love pink. Pink on my face, lips, nails. Pink everywhere. This is just so pretty. Even the name is pink. 

As you can see from the swatches, the pigmentation is awesome and the colors are very intense. I have gotten a whole lot of products which ranged from their highlighter pen to their lipsticks. I am dying to get my hands on the concealer palatte. 

Flo will be doing a review on their lippies so do look out for that!

I have worn Think Pink out three times this week and I cannot stop lovin' it.

I tried out Love & Peach once so below's a picture of the shade. I normally sweep my brush across it and dust off quite abit before LIGHTLY sweep it across my cheeks. I turn red very easily so I don't use alot of blush. But I really am pleasantly surprise and love how this color turns out on my skin!!

It lasts for about 7-9 hours depending on how much I put and I blot once in between during the day. 

Love & Peach 

And this is Rose Royce !

As you can see, it is not as peachy/coral-y in color and I think it's a winner too!

So have you all managed to guess the price? 

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.

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THIS PRODUCT IS ONLY $6.90

The price is unbelievable for the quality. 

However, Catrice is only available in selected Guardian stores.

The outlets that I know carry it are Serangoon Nex, IMM, City Link, Takashimaya, Vicocity, Bugis and Toa Payoh. These are the ones that I know and saw on their FB page.

If you know of any other outlets, do comment below!

Also, have you tried out Catrice and any of their products? Let us know!

Pea

x

Review: Sunkiller BB Perfect Strong

[Products are not sponsored and all reviews are honest opinions!]

Hi everyone! :)

I recently bought this product… kinda accidentally. I wasn't looking for any new sunscreen or any of that sort, but stumbled upon this when I was with my friend. Honestly, I was attracted to its packaging, it was hot pink (!!!). I tried it on, felt the colour will match me pretty okay, and bought it.

It's the Sunkiller BB Perfect Strong SPF 50+/PA+++, available in Watsons. I bought mine from the Ion outlet.

 

Price: S$14.90

Weight: 30ml

 

Fully blended out!

The texture is very lightweight and liquid-y, almost like water (remember to shake before use). As expected, it doesn't cover up as well as normal BB creams, but evens out my skin tone. Because it is so lightweight, I don't really like to layer it. So when I need certain blemishes/scars to be covered, I'll just use concealer before setting powder to seal everything in!

A before and after pic to show the coverage:

I didn't use any concealer or powder, just the BB Perfect Strong alone.

I've tried this on for almost a week, and I feel pretty satisfied with it, except for the fact that it also clings on to dry patches and I happen to have some over the past week… So that was a total downer :( 

Other than that, this is definitely a super convenient product to use for short errands or as a foundation base/primer! Not really sure if I'd repurchase it cause somehow I feel like it does the same stuff (or maybe less) than my daily BB cream :) However if you're looking for something light that will even out your skin tone and make you look fresher, this is a great product.

Have any of you tried this product before? Share some of your thoughts with us! ^.^

Till the next,
Flo♡

Review: L'oreal Superliner Blackbuster

[Products are not sponsored and all reviews are honest opinions!]

So this huge eyeliner just appeared on the market and the only reason I picked it up was due to lots of other reviews saying its smudge-proof. I wanted to line my water/tightline and pencil liners weren't workin' their thang. They were constantly smudging! I guess my waterline is too..watery? Is there such a thing? And who loves panda eyes? I mean, aside from pandas..

but even though they are damn cute omg

The packaging was sleek and super chic. I'm a sucker for black and gold stuff. So the first thing I did before swatching was to smell it. Like straight from the tip haha

And it smells exactly like permanent marker. Some weird shit going on here.
But hey, for the sake of beauty, let's move on.
So I swatched it and then I tried the eyeliner gel from the same line and i rubbed it vigorously. Aside from it fading a little, this baby isn't going anywhere! 

So this thing looks pretty scary but I like how the tip is firm and not the paintbrush-kinda flimsy. I needed something firm to control the drawing. The bulkiness made it easier to have a grasp but makes carrying in my pouch a bitch. 

You would expect full-on pigmentation but surprisingly, its not dark...at all. it fades within minutes of drawing and you would have to line it multiple times to get a deep black effect.
I'm not using it as a normal eyeliner. So that works out fine for me. 

The first line was just one stroke and the second one is layered about three times.

I do have to touch up like, two times a day if I am out for 12 hours but for the price of no smudging, I'd do it willingly. I want to actually try out gel liner and see how that works out. Will let you all know if I pick up one that I like.
Honestly, I would not pick it up if I were to use it as a normal eyeliner. It's too thick for that purpose and the pigmentation is not black black, if you know what i mean. My true love is still Dollywink and Heroine liquid eyeliner. 

Price: SGD$20.90

Overall, I would give it 2.5/5 (for lining my tightline). Repurchasing? Maybe. If I can find another that works to line my tight line and is cheaper, I definitely would go for the alternative.

What do you guys recommend?

Pea

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