Eye Shadow -Rimmel - Scandal Eyes- Bulletproof Beige
littlemj 5/19/2013 6:16:00 PM
NC25 oily monolidder. I tried all the famous bases... THIS is beating out my MUFE Eye Prime and NYX HD eye primer (wand style). And I have the oiliest lids on earth, using this as a base only on the lid covering the eyeball itself (basically what disappears when I open my eyes). It is too shimmery to pull all over the lid itself, so I'll be pairing it over the MUFE or NYX. It IS bulletproof... hope they come out w/ a matte shade eventually.
Was this review helpful to you? Yes No
Eye Shadow -Laura Mercier - Caviar Stick Eye Colour - Cocoa
littlemj 4/21/2013 1:16:00 PM
NC25 Chinese, red rimmed eyes. I am just not reaching for this stick, because I would swear it kept pulling the redness of my eyes out.
Was this review helpful to you? Yes No
Treatments -Avene - Eluage Cream 30 ml
littlemj 4/4/2013 6:09:00 PM
NC25, Chinese acne prone, it's been a long journey in getting acne free. HG! And now that I'm finally reasonably clear of acne (see my insane notepad) and in more of maintenance mode, I have been using Avene Eluage Cream for several months and comparing/contrasting it with several other skin treatments: MUAC gly-uronic serum, PTR Retinol Fusion PM, PC BHA 2%, LRP Redermic, etc etc... Eluage has been each hands down, every time. I also like the cream texture, which I think gives it some moisturizing benefit (vs a watery serum or a gel). So I think I'm just going to stop screwing w/ my face for a bit and just stick with this. Note, I avoid (dimethi)cone products b/c my experience has been they are pore clogging, regular Avene Eluage has no cones but Eluage Rich does.
Was this review helpful to you? Yes No
Cleansers -Paula's Choice - Clear Normalizing Cleanser
littlemj 3/30/2013 12:46:00 AM
NC25 Chinese, acne prone, combo skin. I could of seen a place for this cleanser when my skin was very oily in the years past, but now it's much too drying for my combo skin (liking the Skin Balancing Cleanser currently). Reminds me of the Alpha Hydrox cleanser, along those lines.
Was this review helpful to you? Yes No
Lipstick -Revlon - Juicy Papaya Lip Butter
littlemj 3/25/2013 9:19:00 PM
NC25 Chinese, med to low pigmented lips. A peachy shade that doesn't blend in with my yellow toned skin and make me look washed out! I've been working thru so many (some too orange, some too pastel, some too frosty.. etc etc. I've always enjoyed the Lip Butter formulas, so I'm glad to find a go to peachy summer shade! I've worked my thru most of them (except Creamsicle, Poptart, Gumdrop & Lemonade.. skipped Brown Sugar & Fig Jam), my other favorites in case you're similar coloring: Cotton Candy (pink), Sugar Frosting (frosty cool princess), and Creme Brulee (nudes though I have way too hard of a time pulling that off, it's a just in case).
Was this review helpful to you? Yes No
Treatments -Unlisted Brand - Biotin (All brands)
littlemj 3/25/2013 5:43:00 PM
NC25 Chinese, acne prone. I bought a bottle Nature's Bounty from Costco after seeing a blogger rave about it for stronger nails (mine were bendy and starting to peel without understanding why at the time). Took the bottle home, read the MUA reviews and saw the potential acne trigger but figured you never know til you try so only did low dosage of 1 pill per day.... Used it for about 3 weeks, and cystic city! Took a few weeks to clear up. So yes it's true, can trigger acne. No bueno for me.
Was this review helpful to you? Yes No
Treatments -La Roche Posay - Redermic R
littlemj 3/23/2013 6:24:00 PM
NC25 Chinese, acne prone, mid 30s. The only LRP retinol based product without dimethicone, I decided to compare this to Avene Eluage (1/2 face) and other half the LRP. The LRP actually has a higher % of retinol, but literally you could draw a line down half my face.. and see bumps and congestion on one side of my chin and then near my temples and hair etc. A few wks before it was perfectly clear b/c I was testing Eluage on that side w/ MUAC gly-luronic serum on the other which grew congestion (and then swapped and cleared it up w/ the Eluage again). Ok that was confusing.. basically even w/ less retinol, Avene Eluage wins! Also I use the Avene Retrinal on my forehead, and I would swear the frown lines are less on that side vs the LRP as well.
2 out of 3 people found this review helpful. Was this review helpful to you? Yes No
Misc Beauty Tools -Shu Uemura - Eyelash Curler
littlemj 3/23/2013 1:40:00 AM
PUBLIC SERVICE ANNOUCEMENT: THE ELF REFILL PADS FIT THE SHU CURLER! All Asian typical eyeball girls should try the 3: Shiseido, Shu, and Chanel to see what fits best their shape. That said, if you love your Shu and can't be bothered to order another online, you can see how you like the ELF refills in it. I found them less cushion-y the 1x I tried it and since have moved onto Chanel, but for the price point, you might make a concession. :)
13 out of 13 people found this review helpful. Was this review helpful to you? Yes No
Misc Beauty Tools -Chanel - Precision Eyelash Curler (recourbe cils de chanel)
littlemj 3/23/2013 12:47:00 AM
Chinese eyes, nuff said. Honestly every Asian typical eyeball girl should try all 3: Shiseido, Shu Uemura and Chanel... and just pick whatever is the best shape for one's peepers. Shiseido flirted with me for several pinchy months, then dated a Shu for a year until ... tonight... I married Chanel!
2 out of 2 people found this review helpful. Was this review helpful to you? Yes No
Moisturizers -Paula's Choice - Skin Balancing Daily Mattifying Lotion with SPF 15 and Antioxidants
littlemj 3/22/2013 5:51:00 PM
NC25 Chinese, experimenting w/ pressed powder makeup. Here's an interesting tidbit.... THIS LOTION OXIDIZED MY PRESSED POWDER FOUNDATION MAKEUP ORANGE! I've been wearing this makeup for a year now, so I know what color it starts and should be... after 3 hrs of this under my makeup... I was a dark orange brown!
Was this review helpful to you? Yes No
Blush -Illamasqua - Katie
littlemj 3/22/2013 1:51:00 PM
NC25 Chinese, large cheek pores and acne prone to dimethicone in blushes! I am going to more than happily work my way thru the Illamasqua line of blushes, as it doesn't have 'cones in the blush formula (nor Tarte or some of the MAC matte). After a long trial and error with NARS blushes (blackhead city), I'm happy to have discovered this line. Pigmented and without shimmer (necessary for my large cheek pores), and just like any blush brand, you'll just have to find the colors that work for you. Even though I'm sure this is considered a cool toned blush, Katie looks great on my NC25 warm tone skin. The peach toned equivalent, Lover, just looked orange and even a little ruddy on me so that is getting returned to Sephora.
3 out of 3 people found this review helpful. Was this review helpful to you? Yes No
Cleansers -Vichy - Purete Thermale Cleansing Micellar Lotion for face and eyes
littlemj 3/22/2013 1:06:00 PM
NC25 Chinese, acne prone, waterproof sunscreen and full makeup. It does not seem as nice or as effective as the Bioderma, but Vichy is a heck of lot easier to obtain in the US. So I would grab this IF I just HAD to have micellar water. But really, if I was desperate for makeup removal, I would probably just use jojoba oil in a pinch until I get more Bioderma in the mail.
1 out of 1 people found this review helpful. Was this review helpful to you? Yes No
Cleansers -Caudalie - Cleansing Water
littlemj 3/22/2013 1:03:00 PM
NC25 Chinese, acne prone, waterproof sunscreen and full makeup. Not as gentle as Bioderma Crealine H2O (pink cap). If I had to find one in the US stateside immediately, I would pick the Vichy micellar over the Caudalie.
Was this review helpful to you? Yes No
Cleansers -Bioderma - Sensibio H2O (aka Crealine H20 Solution micellaire)
littlemj 3/22/2013 12:58:00 PM
NC25 Chinese acne prone, waterproof sunscreen and full makeup. This has replaced my previous favorite Fancl Cleasing Oil (then Boscia then jojoba). When I started using the Bioderma (pink cap), I immediately noticed there was less makeup traces during my toner step (aka Philosophy Miracle Worker pads). WIN! Doesn't leave face tight or dry, which really surprised me, nor oily at all. In comparison, Caudalie Cleansing Water left me drier and Avene Micellar left me oily. Since it's hard to locate in the US, looks like the best pricing I can find is on frenchcosmeticsforless, including a potenial MUA discount.
5 out of 5 people found this review helpful. Was this review helpful to you? Yes No
Nails -Zoya - Remove +
littlemj 3/18/2013 11:52:00 AM
I recently started going on a manicure kick this year, and I would use pure acetone to quickly remove polish.. probably after about 5x of this, my nails started peeling! I had never experienced that in my life.. the tips were seperating and peeling in layers (though I've always had thin, bendy weak nails.. but not peeling!). After perusing the nail boards, sounds like pure acetone could do this.. so after chopping off all my tips.. and using the Zoya Remove now for the past few mani's, I don't see this happening anymore. Definitely the Remove isn't as quick as pure acetone, but anything is better than peeling nails!!! I've been cutting in some acetone and glycerine, and when my mini Remove bottle is empty, I'm going to do the DIY version you see on the net and try that next.
Was this review helpful to you? Yes No