January Favourites, Updates and Wishlist

sreda, januar 31, 2018


This became my favourite high coverage drugstore concealer, replacing Collection's after a very long time. Formulas are actually almost identical and you're not missing out much if you have that one already, but the shade is a lot more neutral, so it fits me a bit better. It covers a lot, from circles, redness to spots and it has a matte finish, plus I find the staying power is better than at Catrice Liquid Camouflage, so if you live in a country with Bipa, this is a great concealer to try.

I tend to stick to the same type of warm muted pinky mauve blushes and so I don't neglect any in my collection, I rotate them in my routine - this blush had its turn in January. It's one of the best shades in our drugstores and it's one of those colours that gives the cheeks a bit of definition, but doesn't overtake the look. The formula is nicely pigmented, silky and this shade even has a bit of a glow. It's not as long-lasting as the old Catrice ones or L'Oreal's, but for the money it's a great one.


This isn't in any way a ground breaking fragrance, in fact it's what I consider a very plain scent, but that's what I like about it. It's a simple clean scent, like laundry detergent or a body cream, so really a type of scent that's appropriate for any occasion. Notes mention musk, which I detect, but none of the floral notes of rose, jasmine, neroli and orange blossom are very obvious, though I do notice roses, but in a Chloe type of way, not the granny rose kind of way. If you're looking for something very simple, clean and on a budget, this is a nice option.  


It's weird to put a hand sanitizer here, but I'm almost addicted to the scent of it. It's a very unisex scent and the name pretty much says it all. There's a strong wood note with some spices and to make it a bit fresher there is a crisp apple note. I was so impressed by this scent that I ordered Twilight Woods body mist, which is a much more girly and cosy wood scent, but man doesn't BBW do woody scents well. Also these Pocketbacs are great and I love that they come in such a cute size because I can easily carry it anywhere and they always have such a great selection of scents.


ESSENCE Wood You Love Me LE Makeup Sponges
Sponges that come with cushion foundations are, apart from my oval brush, my favourite applicators because they always blend the foundation so naturally. I was glad to see that Essence released their version in their latest limited edition, so I got two for about 2€. It's the same as sponges I got in Korean cushion foundations and if you still see them anywhere, they are worth it.


MISSLY Pretty Mermaid Rainbow Highlighter LE
I only talked about this on Instagram so far and I haven't had it for very long yet, but it's a limited edition worth mentioning because Misslyn did a great job. I had their powder products before and only their bronzers are nicely smooth, while the rest tends to be on the powdery side, including their highlighter in the permanent line, but this limited edition has much better quality powders. There are three highlighters, one is a pink cream that I thought wasn't that good, but the gold one looked fantastic and I was going to buy it until I tried this rainbow one which looked even better for my skin tone. It's got the same type of very fine shimmer than Catrice's Kaviar Gauche highlighter, so it looks amazing on the cheeks. It's not super metallic strong, but still among stronger ones and it has a subtle pink tone to it when you mix all colours together.


UPDATES


Birthday Makeup
As usually I used my favourite makeup bits on my birthday, even though my makeup actually looked pretty much the same I always wear and it's the look you've seen many times here in my reviews, which means it was the same light coverage + simple natural eyeshadow look with a black winged liner + glowly cheeks with a natural blush + my beloved Committed matte liquid lipstick. I used:
CATRICE HD Liquid Coverage Precise Concealer (new in the drugstores. I used it on my old, but still very red blemish mark on my chin and it wiped off too fast. I should have used Look)
TOO FACED Chocolate Bar Eyeshadow Palette (Shade Amaretto and Cherry Cordial, both reddish browns)
CATRICE Ultimate Nail Lacquer Bloody Mary to Go (in the old formula, but same shade still exists)


Fragrances are such an important thing for me, I've said it before that after matte liquid lipsticks they are my second favourite thing, even though I don't put a big emphasis on them here because frankly no one cares, but I'm one of those weird people who changes their fragrance a lot, even in a day. So I couldn't quite decide which scent to wear on my birthday and I sprayed a different one every few hours (none apart from Olympea last terribly long). My favourite of the day was the sadly discontinued L'Occitane Fleur D'Or Acacia (such an amazing scent, L'Occitane always discontinues the best things), but I always love a bit of Hugo Boss Ma Vie and also their The Scent, plus I mustn't forget the lovely Olympea, while my newest Twilight Woods from Bath and Body Works is the only proper cosy wintery scent.

Skin Care

January was the month of trialling new products. Since my favourite serum Banila Miss Flower Mrs Honey has been discontinued, I've embarked on finding a replacement, plus I was sent the new Vichy Idealia Peeling which I trialled first. When I try new products I always go to my basic routine, so I can truly see what the product is capable of doing on its own without interference from other products plus so I can be sure what breaks me out. My basic routine consists of a cleansing oil (Biobaza) and cleansing gel (Balea), while serving as my moisturiser is my trusted Nuxe Huile Prodigieuse.

I've already reviewed this in my New in, but it's pretty much the same product to me than COSRX BHA Blackhead Liquid in terms of effect, except it also makes the skin feeling soft. I have a couple of prominent red blemish marks right now which I expected this to at least tone down if not fade significantly, but unfortunately this is just too weak. But it did keep my skin completely clear and as I said soft and smooth. 

HOLY SNAIL Honey Shark (7ml sample)
My first proper potential replacement for Banila. It contains a large percentage of niacinamide and plenty of other goodness, so I expected a lot from it. I've been using it for a good three weeks now and I see absolutely nothing. No brightening or at least more hydrated skin and so far I'm not impressed despite the fantastic ingredients. It terms of texture this is a light serum that absorbs within seconds.

ETUDE HOUSE Moistfull Collagen line samples (Toner, Essence, Emulsion and Cream)
I'm trying this as a replacement of the collagen part of Banila serum. Toner is so wonderful as it feels more like a luxurious serum than a toner, so that's the product I would purchase full size. The Essence is ok, but nothing special and emulsion is just a light lotion, so an alternative moisturiser. The cream is another lovely product with a gel cream type of texture that fits oily/combination/normal skin and it's a great base for makeup. All have this divine orange scent that makes me want to buy at least one of these in full-size even more, but it's not an amazing collection of products, just hydrating and when I use it without other products I noticed my skin wasn't quite as smooth/soft feeling.


I finally got a bottle of this, which I already mentioned was one of my favourite products based on the samples I used. I've been without a galactomyces based essence for over a month and it showed, but in a couple of days with this my skin looked more radiant and smoother with more refined pores. I'm calling it: this is the best product ever.


Some more skin care products I'll be trialling in the next months:

HADA LABO Super Hyaluronic Acid Face Moisturizing LotionI already gave this one test, but then my skin broke out and I got scared this could be it (or hormones because I wasn't using CORSX BHA). It's a hyaluronic acid based serum that's even cheaper than The Ordinary (170 ml is about 15 €, mine is a mini 30 ml size for 5 €) and it feels so amazing on the skin, it's like mini heaven with its hydrating, plumping and comfortable formula (same as EH Moistfull toner), so I'll be gutted if it really turns out it breaks me out. 
LEE JIHAM DR.'s Care Vita-Propolis AmpouleMy second choice for a replacement for Banila. This is a light serum that absorbs pretty fast and leaves no stickiness behind unlike Banilla.  
BENTON Snail Bee High Content EssenceCombination of snail mucin and bee venom (sounds crazy I know) in essence form that's it's very popular in the K-Beauty community, especially among those with unclear skin. It's a gel type of essence that absorbs very fast. 
HOLY SNAILS Hanbang SharkSame thing as the Honey Shark just with ginseng and ceramides. Formula feels the same.

Ordered

Expect them in my next AliExpress Bargains post.

Wishlist 
I'm just posting the same birthday wishlist I did on Stories a while ago. I still haven't bought anything apart from BBW Twilight Woods, even though my birthday is already gone.


Have a great day!

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15 comments

  1. I have the earring from the picture on left 3rd picture down. The one that looks straight. It does not stay on ear that way. Pulled by gravity, it drops down

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    1. I just got it today and it is indeed very wide, so it doesn't hold against the ears well, but I'll just squeeze it a bit with pliers to make it more narrow. The leaf ones next to them are much better :)

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  2. Concealer se bere super, ga moram poiskat naslednjič ko bom kaj tam :)
    Te Labiotte wine lip tints pa gledam že celo večnost, se mi zdi da jih rabim, že samo zato ker so pač vino :D <3

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    1. Samo ne vem, če bo pri Look zate odtenek, ker Petra pravi, da sta oba zelo svetla. Drugače se pa splača pogledat :)

      Labiotte embalaže so res kjut, ampak tudi ocene berem same dobre, sploh za Fitting šminke :)

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  3. Joj, o tem Bipa concealerju sem pa slišala same pohvale, tako da že komaj čakam naslednji izlet v Avstrijo, da vidim, če imajo primeren odtenek zame. Misslyn je s celotno kolekcijo zadel, sploh z embalažo. Tale highlighter je res super! Pa hvala, da si me opozorila na Essence gobice, zaogotovo jih prečekiram!

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    1. Zelo pozitivno me je presenetil ta korektor :) Škoda, da nimamo Bipe tudi tukaj.

      Misslyn je tokrat zadel tudi s formulami, ker sta oba osvetljevalca v kamnu odlične kvalitete. Upam, da tudi to kolekcijo dodajo v redno linijo kot so Pop art :)

      Gobice se pa splača vzet, če jih še najdeš :) Vsak dan nanašam puder in blendam korektor z njimi.

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  4. Bipa korektor bo spet v mojih favoritih. Sploh več nočem drugih uporabljat, od kar imam tega :).

    Te gobice iz cushion podlag so definitivno najboljše za nanašanje podlag. Jaz jih nosim s sabo za popravke. Vse Misslyn osvetljevalce sem preizkusila v trgovini razen tega rainbow :D. Na tebi izgleda čudovito, jaz ga seveda ne rabim :).

    Jaz se vedno počutim izgubljeno, ko brskam po korejski negovalni kozmetiki. Imajo toliko izbire in včasih je težko najti kakšne prave ocene. Sem pa zadnjič gledala Elizavecca 97% in 100& Galactomyces serume. Tega od COSRX sem imela tester pa me ni navdušil. Vidim, da pa se ti izvlečki kvasa res veliko uporabljajo v njihovi negi. Imaš kakšne bloge, ki jim slediš glede tega, ali kar sama iščeš?

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    1. Jaz zdaj testiram še The Saem in od Catrice novi precision korektor. Prvi je veliko bolj koncentriran/gost in prekrije še več, je pa še malenkost bolj očiten in težji. Drugi je pa isti kot Liquid Camouflage in ni tako obstojen kot Look.

      Rainbow se mi itak zdi, da bi bil zate preroza, ampak za moj ten je pa boljši kot zlat. Sta pa oba odlične kvalitete :)

      Največ gledam na Redditu: https://www.reddit.com/r/AsianBeauty/ , so pa bloga Fifty Shades of Snail in Snow White and the Asian Pear, ter videi Gothamista zakladnica informacij in ocen :)

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  5. I don't know why my comments are not showing up, but this is the third time I try! T.T

    I couldn't write a review on mobile for the previous empties post, but I bought the Secret Key FTE as a starter first because it's better value but if it's not ideal for me, I have to try Cosrx! :D The dove serum for hair is the best thing I've tried, thanks!, but such a shame I can only find it in France Leclerc and not DM. The shower cream is also amazing, has finally made my skin soft and smooth even when I shave, wow!! I want to try the body cream next :D
    I also tried the Moisture Balm by joico but I think my hair is not as dry as I think because I didn't like it. Intense Hydrator next it is :)
    After trying japanese toners (Kikumasamune and Cezanne, both 500ml!) I fell in love with AB skincare because they completely saved and changed my skin, so I bought all the rest to continue improving haha. I also bought Benton's essence, HL Premium and a few other things too! No sheet masks, because I'm too lazy and I find them a bit expensive for long term results. Btw, if you didn't like Shark sauce, I recommend looking up Melano CC. I'll forever buy this! It's the only thing that has faded this huge unicorn pimple scar in the middle of my forehead in a week when usually it takes months!
    I've been probably looking up some products on your blog a thousand times this month, and spent many hours on AB reddit, and ended up buying a whole skincare routine haha. It's amazing how you can buy 12 amazing products with a bit more than 100€ when you could only get max 3 'good' products here on our side with that!

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    1. So sorry you had problem commenting :/ It's out of my hands as it's a Blogger thing and it's known to be glitchy from time to time. You can always leave a comment of Facebook if it doesn't work here :)

      Secret Key was the type of product for me where I noticed a difference when I stopped using it. It's such a slow improvement that you can't even see it, but it's there. Cosrx does it much faster for me, but some don't find it that special, so I guess it just works great with my skin :)

      Dove Advanced Hair line isn't sold here anywhere any more, not even Leclerc :/ At least I found it on Amazon UK, but I still stocked up just in case. I use Moisture Balm only in cases when my hair is completely dried up, otherwise it's too heavy, while Hydrator is much more suited for regular use.

      Kikumasamune is on my wishlist to try, but once I go though my samples and try everything I have now. I hear so many good things about it it's hard not to order it right away :) I've heard of Melano CC and have it somewhere saved as a new possible product to try someday :) I've been trying to fade this new blemish mark on my chin with 5% gycolic acid and it's going way too slow :/

      I've replaced 99% of my skin care since last year, mostly, but not all, with AB and I'm much happier with my skin than I was :) I love that you can get such effective products for such an affordable price and even more importantly that I have a chance to try products before committing to a full size. Similar, good stuff here is mostly high end apart from the Ordinary.

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  6. Hello Mateja :)

    I have some recommendations for you, since you've shared so many good ones with the world :D At this point I think I own almost half of the same makeup collection as you do. I'm even a bit proud of myself for using Maybelline Fit Me Matte+Poreless foundation in 110 before you reviewed it.

    1. I bought Maybelline Superstay Matte Ink in 15 Lover yesterday and while the shade seems a bit cool for me (bummer), it truly is insanely sticky like you described. I tried putting some Bourjois Java Rice powder on top and HOLY MOLY, not only did it kill the stickiness, it also gave it a beautiful sheen, not like metallic lipsticks overkill sheen, just subtle and pretty. I'm for sure going to pick up Pioneer too.
    2. When you get a chance, smell the Tesori d'Oriente Byzantium perfume.
    3. While you're at the drugstore, get yourself a Catrice Light Correcting serum primer. You need it. I don't find that it extends the longevity of my foundation, because I have a combination skin (extremely, insanely oily nose and somewhat dry everywhere else), but it goes very nicely over it and the glow goes through somewhat (using the aforementioned Fit Me fondation and Catrice HD Liquid Coverage foundation).

    I hope you enjoy them as much as I do <3
    Thank you for the years of wonderful content, I hope you keep blogging despite all the difficulties.

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    1. Hi :) Yeah, Matte + Poreless is pretty brilliant :) I feel the same about Lover, it turns so cool on me after several hours on my lips and drains the colour from my face, but it's pretty at application. I never thought about putting powder over it, but it makes sense. I just wait for it to dry and try not to speak much :D

      You know I actually did try some Tesori fragrances about two weeks ago :) I was buying myself a birthday present and I saw them in my local supermarket, so of course I tried all, but not the Byzantium version and I can't remember whether that was the only one without a tester or it simply wasn't there. There was Ayurverda (just pure patchouli, didn't like it), Vaniglia e Zenzero del Madagascar (one of the best vanillas I've tried), Orchidea della Cina (soapy) and some men's version that I can't remember. I though they were mostly great and I smelled them on myself while driving home, but then they were just gone.

      I've been checking that Primer, but saw no reviews or mentions on Instagram, so I didn't know what to think about it. Thanks for the recommendation, I might check it out :)

      I'm so glad you enjoy my blog <3 Don't worry I have posts ready, so there will be more, even though it sucks to see so little people read them any more. If I just post a quick review on Stories I get five times more traffic in a day than here, but I'll persist for a while :)

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    2. Unfortunately, yes, Instagram is taking over :( It sadly feels so impersonal to me, just small snippets, whereas blog feels more like a diary of sorts. I do like more descriptive posts, but I do, however, follow you on Instagram and your drugstore favorites story is absolutely awesome as a quick little guide. Plus your feed is beautiful too.

      I have to try the Vaniglia e Zenzero one then if I can find it here in Serbia, I love vanilla everything. Byzantium I found lasts pretty long on me (but that just might be my body chemistry) and you can literally smell it across the room, I wore it to work and one of my colleagues who sits 3 desks away asked me which scent it was, lol. To me it smells like a cozy and warm baby powder and almonds but I can't wear it when I have a headache because it's pretty strong.

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    3. Instagram is on the one hand filled with tons of (mostly useless) information, but also too little about beauty finds :/. Like you say just snippets and what I dislike even more is that Stories disappear and searching for a specific product is much harder than on blogs. I still much prefer to do it old school because I like to have things organised, but I can't help it if people don't care about proper reviews anymore. I'm glad to hear you enjoyed my story about drugstore favourites :) I took as long to make as a proper post, so Instagram is no quicker than doing this :/

      Normally I'm not a fan of strong vanillas, but this one is lovely :) I already checked all Tesore versions on Fragrantica and the notes of Byzantium sounds great :) Not sure we have more than those versions I saw in Interspar.

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  7. rainbow highligther? How can I say no to that!

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