MAYBELLINE Instant Anti-age Eraser Multi-use Concealer

 00 Ivory

This has been my favourite formula for so many years, but shade 03 Fair I have was not the best match for my pale skin, so I was overjoyed when I discovered Maybelline's new shade 00 Ivory. It's the best shade in drugstores I've found so far. It's very light and the undertone is not strong, so it fits my neutral skin tone best out of all concealers in my collection (along with the slightly darker Look by Bipa). This formula has medium coverage, which is enough because I don't like to completely cover my skin even if some imperfections shine though and this concealer is one of those that looks like skin, not makeup. The sponge is really helpful because at most times I don't need anything else to blend (unless there is a lot of product on the sponge), actually using this really feels like an eraser due to the applicator. Discovering this shade just made my year and I can get it easily at my local drugstore.

CATRICE Blush Box Glow + Multicolour

020 It's Wine O'Clock

Catrice almost always has brilliant quality of blushes, I've only ever been disappointed with their palettes, but their individual blushes are a delight to use. This formula is very pigmented, actually too much for my pale skin, so I need to use a light touch with it. Just like at their other illuminating/glowy formulas I've tried so far, I don't get that highlighter-meets-blush effect on my cheeks and it looks matte on me, but I don't mind because this shade is very pretty, giving me the look of fresh, baby doll cheeks that pairs beautifully with a light pink lip. Of course this formula does not beat my all-time favourites L.O.V. blushes, but it's a good change after six months of constantly wearing those. 

ESSENCE Draw the Line Instant Colour Lipliner

07 Eternal Beauty

This isn't the best formula, even though it is Essence's most long lasting, however, it is thick, slightly sticky and these dry out fast becoming useless. Despite that it's easy to apply it all over the lips, it's not drying and this particular shade is such a beauty. 07 Eternal Beauty is a light-medium muted pink, definitely a colour for my skin tone and one I've been wearing every day since I got it. This and Essence's Soft Contouring formula in shade 08 Big Proposal are some of my favourite shades ever. (If you're interested in the Draw the Line formula, I have a full review of shade 05 here)

 PANTENE Pro V Intensive Repair/ Repair & Care line

Why, oh why did I not know about this line sooner? It's an absolute drugstore gem that rivals many much more expensive products. I'm especially blown away by the effect of the conditioner and the mask, which are some of the very rare ones that provide enough nourishment for my dry hair, plus they even manage to make it somewhat softer, which at my thick texture is a miracle in itself and they some add shine. For a shampoo with no silicones this is surprisingly good, as similarly to L'Oreal's it almost feels like there is a bit of conditioner in there. It's not quite as good, but it's a solid second favourite in my books. The leave-in conditioner is another silicone-free product, so something I prefer to use on damp hair after washing too add an extra boost of moisture and preventing my hair from feeling dry again on the second day, but I do have to add something with silicones after, otherwise my hair tangles. This whole line will actually save me a lot of money that I kept spending on more expensive products over the years. Only thing it needs is an alcohol-free rich silicone-hair oil, then it'd be a perfect set.

BEAUTY UPDATES

ESSENCE Lash Princess False Lash Effect Mascara Waterproof and CATRICE Eyeconista Lash Millionizer Volume Mascara Waterproof

The two waterproof mascaras I've been using recently, but none are my favourite (yet maybe?), still given that they were an important part of my daily routine they deserve to be featured in this part of the post. I did a comparison test for a few days with one on each eye (changing the order daily because my lashes on one side are horribly unruly and make any mascara appear the worse performer). They are very similar with the main difference between these two being the wetness of the formula as Essence's has the same drier formula as I <3 Extreme and Catrice's is quite wet for a waterproof mascara, which doesn't work in its favour. Neither keep my lashes as perfectly curled as I expect, but they are averagely performing in this department, enough to say they are still worthy considering the purchase. Both are exceptional volumising and lengthening mascaras that are capable of creating big, very black, noticeable lashes. Neither smudge on me or run, but they are also such a pain to remove, which I'm not a fan of because I <3 Extreme is not quite a stubborn. The latter in general feels lighter and creates a more feathery look, but these two get you that volume much faster. I'm not super happy with the brushes of either as Lash Princess could be more defining and Eyeconista could be larger (the brush is very small compared to most mascaras).

CATRICE Ten!Sational 10 in 1 Dream Primer

Since I ran out of Max Factor's Face Finity All Day Primer I haven't had anything that truly convinced me in my stash, though I haven't picked any of those myself, while this one was on my wishlist due to ingredients, as it has glycerine 3th and niacinamide 5th on the list after water and it doesn't sound like a typical silicone primer that be too dry and flakey on my dry skin. It's definitely a primer a lot more suited for normal-dry skin than oily-combination as it leaves a slightly tacky feeling and it's not matte at all. The ambitious 10 in 1 claim is mildly put an exaggeration, especially when it comes to pore minimising, blurring imperfections and evening out the skin tone, but it is a hydrating primer with a natural glow that is not over the top like at usual illuminating primers which tend to emphasise the texture of the skin. It has two minuses which are the reason this still isn't my proper replacement for MF's primer and that is the tint, which is too dark for me, though it's sheer and blends in better than Catrice's 1 Minute Primer. The second is the SPF 15, which is just not enough.

NIVEA products

This month I got this weird desire to explore Nivea products, a brand that I've largely neglected up until I tried their great mattifying face sunscreen. I went to their website and I'm sure if they didn't have the ingredients list there, my wishlist would stay intact, but I went through all of their products and picked those that primarily had Coenzyme 10/Ubiquinone highest on the list. Why Q10? Well, based on my limited knowledge there are a few ingredients than have been scientifically proven to diminish signs of aging: vitamin A/retinol/retinoids, vitamin C, peptides, Coenzyme 10/Ubiquinone and niacinamide/vitamin B3 (this list could be wrong, though. I got it of Reddit) - I had no Q10 products in my routine, so I wanted to include such products (for peptides I'm checking out Olay/Olaz, for vitamin A The Ordinary and Avon). I picked Q10 Plus C Anti-wrinkle + Energy Skin Sleep Cream as a potential replacement for my two vitamin C products. It combines ascorbic acid and Q10, but it doesn't state the percentage of vitamin C. I only used twice so far once because I want to use up Melano CC first, but I'm hoping for the best for this one because it's still reasonably priced and very easily accessible to me (it's 12.5 € for 40 ml, which is much cheaper than my favourite Eucerin's version which is 17 € for 7.5 ml, though that one will be really hard to beat. Good thing about Nivea is also that it's sold in supermarkets, so I can use those 25% discounts some have). In terms of texture it's like a regular thick cream and it sits on the skin for a long time, but not in an annoying way. Next I got the itty bitty 6.5 ml bottle of Q10 Power Deep Wrinkle + Firming Treatment which Nivea says has the highest concentration of Q10 in their products. It's supposed to last 10 days, but despite the thick texture, I already went past that mark. I can't report on any fascinating results though. The third face product I got were the Q10 Power Replenishing Pearls. It has Q10 6th place after water, which is not as high as I'd want, but it also contains hyaluronic acid and creatine right after. Despite the to me deceiving appearance of a possible light serum texture, these pearl are like a thick cream or even a balm. It's too early to tell if it's doing anything, but it's very nourishing and on the first day my skin had a healthy glow to it. For body I picked my first Nivea body milk Firming Q10 + Vitamin C. The latter is in a a form of sodium ascorbyl phosphate, a stable form of vitamin C, but it's not terribly high on the list, regardless I wanted to try it. It's the lightest formula in my collection (I like my body moisturisers heavy and thick), however, it takes a long time to absorb, in fact I can still feel it's on my skin in the morning. I've been using it every day for a week and while I can't report any firming results, but my skin has been nicely nourished and it actually finally got rid of some persistently dry patches I've had for years now. I also picked up a Hand Cream Anti-age Q10 and very unexpectedly I really like it. I thought I won't because I'm very spoiled by L'Occitane's hand creams, however, this quite nice. It's light, yet moisturising enough and though it takes longer to absorb than L'Occitane, it's absorbs completely in a few minutes. Formula feels almost silky which I like a lot and the scent is a typical Nivea. It's nowhere near as nourishing as L'Occitane, but I'm enjoying using this. Last thing I grabbed was their new Curl Forming Spray which is an alcohol free hair spray with oil - that last oil bit got me and I had to try it. I expected a mix between that got2b #Oh My Nude Tame it Softly Dry Lightweight Oil Mist I love and a hair spray, but it's more a like a light-medium flexible hold hair spray that indeed isn't drying, but not nourishing and I can apply a ton of this on dry hair, yet it never feel heavy. On damp hair before drying it's another story as the hair feels slightly sticky and textured like using a mousse. I put my hair in a bun after using a hair dryer and I woke up with my usual curls, but tighter and the sticky, heavy feeling was gone. So far I prefer it on dry hair.

My current collection of vitamin C products. Favourite of course is the amazing Eucerin Hyaluron Filler Vitamin C Booster which impressed me with both the lovely texture and its results. I'm currently trying to use up Melano CC Vitamin C Essence which sadly never provided me with any visible results, but the dry oil texture is nice. I've already mentioned that Nivea's Q10 plus C just got it's turn, so I don't know if it's effective yet, but the insect repellent scent is not my favourite. I've been avoiding using up Tiam's C Source despite the highest ascorbic acid content (20 %) because it's just a pain too use - too drying for my skin, sticky and difficult to layer over, plus I saw no results and nothing comparable to Eucerin. 

DISAPPOINTMENTS

 LVLY by Paola Maria Cleansing Oil

This was the biggest disappointment in the last month. I was so hoping I finally found a decent, cheaper replacement for Biobaza Micellar Cleansing Oil that I've been using for a couple of years now. While this forms the riches, thickest emulsion out of all oil cleansers I've tried, it is impossible to rinse off completely. It leaves a filter of product on the skin and it doesn't even remove mascara well, ether waterproof or regular. It's such a shame because it's one of very rare cleansing oils we can get in our drugstores and it's one of only two cheap ones. 

WISHLIST