Craves: Random

I've decided to post this random post of stuff that tinged my brain last night while I was surfing.

I think I need some of these jute material shoes though it makes me feel terribly guilty wanting a new pair after just getting one. But they're on sale. How can I not want them? The insole is pigskin leather and the sole is rubber. Super win from Ylla for the Laura Ballernina flats. All the colors are lovely and so are the blues and the purples that are not in this pic.

I need to stay hydrated and these pretties from CBTL are making me thirsty.

I don't go to The Body Shop much because it's hard to control myself when they've got discounts and promos abounding. This one is on a really great promo sale though and would be great hoard for Christmas presents.

My loves. VMV hypoallergenics and BB cream. They call it Skintangible "Faint"ation Skin-Refining Non-Makeup SPF 30. I just call it God-sent answer to a prayer.

Love: So! F.A.B. Aster Beige Coffee

 

I didn't expect to get myself a new pair of shoes at the first day of the month but I just happened to pass by So! F.A.B. having a sale a week before that and found a great range of shoes that are very comfortable. I even found some of their high heels easy to wear. As those who know me well know, comfort when it comes to shoes are the best.

Frankly, with the bargain prices they had and all the different designs available, I was quite overwhelmed with them all so I got a bunch of them and tried them all on. It was quite a long process but I'm happy with the loafers I got. I would even more shoes but that's for another post.

First off,the comfort can't be beat with these. It's got comfortable cushioned insoles and ridged rubber soles. I have wide feet so I sometimes get shoes a size up but the size 35 was a great hugging fit. Also, absolutely no blistering for this pair for me.

As for the design, I find it really great when a pair of shoes have that visible stitch mark. So many shoes nowadays are simply glued together and it's such a pain when they just fall apart in the middle of walking somewhere anywhere. I'm glad there are still shoes like these. As for the color, I thought they would be hard to pair with stuff but the top is such a neutral nude that it's actually quite easy to wear with both dresses, pants and even shorts. A great all-around type of shoe. I'm lovin'.

Craves: Revlon

I got bitten by a new bug when I stopped over the Revlon counter to check out some of their products when I passed by.

 I love buying lippies. Right now, I have a lip stain, a lip balm, a lip gloss and a lipstick in my bag. I keep trying to minimize but I always get some lip product stuck somewhere. It’s just so hard to resist a good shade sometimes. And lip balms and lip stains are multipurpose, right? So I checked out the new Just Bitten Kissable Balm Stain, though truthfully, I didn’t have a lot of expectations. The shades were pretty and perfect and it was obviously a moisturizing product when I swatched it on my hand. The packaging was cute, like a jumbo color pencil. But then I have a lipstain and a lip balm, so I asked for the price and went my merry way to the office. After office hours, I checked my hand and noticed that the shade was still there. Faint but definitely there. That’s a sure win for me, pretty, long-lasting and moisturizing. It made me check some of their other products just in case something else catches my eye.

I’m liking the looks of the ColorStay Whipped Crème Makeup. I have a similar product stocked at home and I love the shade payoff, the light feeling on the skin and the long wear time, at least on my combination skin type. My old product has already been discontinued, however and I’m thinking this is great sub. One possible con is the silicone, “dimethicone”, as it could possibly break me out.

I’m new to the brow make-up thing but as previously mentioned, I’m trying it out these days and the ColorStay Brow Enhancer has promise. I like double-duty products and based on majority of the reviews, it works well as colored wax and highlighter. Too bad it doesn’t have a brow brush included but I do cart around a separate brow brush so it’s not such a bad thing.

I want to try the ColorStay Smoky Shadow Stick. I’ve always wanted a non-powder eyeshadow that has staying power. Blending is hard, according to some reviews, but I'm not going to let that stop me from wanting to try it.

All pictures from the product website.

Stocked: Smashbox, The Body Shop, Muji and The Face Shop

There were several things I picked up during the past week for one reason or another. Some of them I wanted because I needed them for the moment, some because they were on sale and I was stocking up.

I got a Smashbox Limitless Long Wear Lipgloss in Endless Kiss. This was on sale at the Beauty Bar as it was from the In Bloom collection. I wanted to try these because it's long-wearing, a not so-overbearing coral and a gloss. I love the shade but I'm glad I didn't pay full price for these as it's not the best idea to wear these while wearing your hair down on a windy day.

They also had the other shade from the same collection, which was in a lighter more nude shade, on sale, as well as the O-Gloss Noir. I wanted to try the Noir but since I'm not sure about berry being a good shade for me, I stopped myself. I'm thinking over whether I'll still get the other shade, though. It's still on sale, it's a great neutral shade and if I put my hair up, not much of a problem with the sticking thing. Also, I love cruelty-free and paraben-free make-up.

I picked up a jar of The Body Shop Elderflower Underperfumed Eye Gel. It was also on sale and I simply got it to stock up. Always a great idea to stock on eye gel as the eye area is always the first to get wrinkles. I might be going overboard, though, as when I checked my little orange box of stuff, I still have two other jars of eye cream.

I couldn't resist getting a bottle of Cleansing Oil from Muji when I stopped by. As a fan of long-wear make-up, it's imperative to get a cleansing oil as it's so much easier to slap it on a full face of make-up and just let it melt. Washing it off with a wet wash cloth just clears everything up. This one is mineral oil free so that makes me happy.

From the Face Shop, I got a Lovely Me: Ex BB Cream and a Freshian Volumizing Mascara. Another sale, another tube to stock. TFS BB creams are the best and the SPF is always a winner. Korean mascaras in general are my go-to as they don't flake on me and the prices are so much better. So when it's on sale, it's the best.

Ahhh... Lovely to spend money on myself. Hehe!

Craves: BB Creams

I have fallen into the BB cream craze since a few years ago. They're easier to use compared to foundation as I find them to be more pigmented and easier to blend. A tube can last a really long time. Also, it's not so hard to find the perfect shade as there's usually just one shade available that blends into a person's individual skin tone so there isn't a lot of second-guessing. The original ones from Germany have been formulated for use on post-surgery operation wounds to hide the flaws and help them heal faster, which delights me as I tend to pick on my blemishes.

The first ones released in the country came from Korean brands and when they first came out, it was a little hard to get any as they all seem to be out of stock. Thankfully, these days, they're easier to come by and the other international brands, both drugstore and high-end have started releasing their own version.Though I still have a tube left and another stocked on the side from one of the sales out this season, the newest releases sure are making itch to get another one.

One such release is the All-In-One BB Cream from the Body Shop. I went ahead and tested it on the store and it was delightful. It came out white from the tube and changed to an undetectable shade when blended on the skin. It left a flowery scent that dissipated after a while.

Another is the Camera Ready BB Cream from Smashbox. There has been a ton of raves over this product before they even released it on their online store so I'm really excited to get my hand on these as Smashbox is one of my favorite products. It's cruelty and paraben-free and it has SPF 35.

Of course, I'll always come back to my first love when it comes to BB creams, TFS. The Face Shop's many different variants can be so overwhelming, though. I want them all but since my tendency these days is to choose long-wearing products, I'm looking at the Power Perfection.With the promise of 12-hour long wear, it's a definite pick. For everyday wear, hydration is still important so Aqua Tinted would be good for that.

Pictures from the products' website and facebook pages.

Trial: Ever Bilena Kleopatra

Ever since I've given birth, my eyebrows tend to dissppear from most of the photographs I'm part of that I tend to want to erase all the recent ones. At the very least, deny that I'm that person posing such and such. It depresses me sometimes and other times, I simply tell the photographer (hubby) that he's not good at taking photographs at all.

I figured I've had enough denial and it's time to step up and be a girly-girl so I got myself a cheap browliner for practice. There were a lot of choices but the cheapest one with an attached brush was this one. I could have gotten the other ones with an attached sharpener but since this is practice anyway, I might as well go with something that makes application easier and splurge when I get the hang of it.

It's actually fairly easy to use. I simply line and blend. The brown blends well without screaming liner. The brush helps a lot. I'm loving the look and will try it out for a while.

I washed my face with water afterwards and noticed that the liner washed off fast so I'm probably not going to have any expectations on wear time for this one but I'm happy with the practice shot.

Unboxed: Sugarfree Bowie Champagne

I was pleasantly surprised to learn that Sugarfree had a sale online and immediately checked the shoes they put up. I'm a fan of classic pumps in general and as they had the Bowie Champagne on sale, I chose it from all the other pretties that were available in my size.

The shoes were beautiful and they came in a pretty black box with a ribbon handle. I wish I could say I fell in love but with shoes, comfort always come first with me and I'm as of yet unpracticed with the height. I'll take to wearing them every now and then on soft flooring but I'm not gonna be able to use them continuously for a whole day. Too high so sigh.