After finally managed to decide on what sunscreen to get (Biore UV Aqua Watery Essence), I’m still in a sunscreen crave. This time I thought I’ll get something in powder form, for touch ups during the day. Again I’m leaning toward Asian products since they seem to obsess over sun protection more so than western brands. To my delight, more local Indonesian products now have double spectrum sun protection. Easier to find, and relatively more affordable. Yay! So, I have been thinking and have narrowed down my choices to the following, in no particular order.
Caring by Biokos Timeless Illuminate. SPF 35 PA+++
Canmake Transparent Finish Powder. SPF 30 PA++
To be honest I don’t know what else is out there in terms of compact powder with sun protection. I think Emina and Marina both have compact powder with UV protection, too. I’ve also seen some Sun Cushion but I think I’d like powder form since I already use cushion as base. But darn these Korean cosmetics, they keep producing these cute cushions!
The Face Shop x Disney Baby Sunscreen CushionEtude House Sun Blind CushionThe Face Shop x Kakao Friends Sun Eco Cushion
Still don’t know which one I’m gonna get, although I’m leaning towards Sariayu. Do you use sun protection powder/compact? Any thoughts?
A few weeks ago I was asked to help do a video of lipstick swatches. Female Daily has a video series of two persons with different skin tones trying on different shades of lipsticks. This way you can see how the lipstick would look on different skin tones. The video series is called #FDSwatchSister and you can find many videos with all kind of lipsticks. Long story short, I tried on nine shades of LA Girl Matte Flat Finish Pigment Gloss. Those of you who have tried this particular liquid lipstick will know that this lipstick is not that easy to remove. I used Bioderma Sebium micellar water cleanser and lip balm in between applications. By the end of the whole process my lips felt… abused.
In this video are shades: Dreamy, Fleur, Bazaar, Timeless, Playful, Rebel, Secret, Backstage, Blackcurrant.
You can see other videos by Female Daily here. Do subscribe 🙂
Having quite a few lipstick to rotate, I don’t really have a favorite. My goal is to rotate them all so that (eventually) they will all be gone. Sure, I have a few go-to shades for different occasions but none get that coveted “favorite” tag. Yet. Until I stumbled upon Maybelline Color Show in Pinkalicious. I bought it as an afterthought. I was shopping for makeup brushes on Luxola and needed a few more items to qualify for free shipping. So I bought a lip gloss and this lipstick. I love the gloss, too, by the way. Will talk about it in a different post.
Since the lipstick was not my primary target, I left it unopened for about two weeks. When I finally opened and tried it, I was pleasantly surprised. This is not my first Maybelline lipstick but my experience with this brand (lipstick wise) has never been exceptional. Not this time. My early verdict is that this lipstick will get some considerable mileage.
Packaging-wise, it’s pretty standard. Black plastic tube with colored ring in the middle to identify its color family (not the exact color). In order to see what color it is, you need to look at the bottom of the tube. When applied, it glides pretty smoothly onto my lips, no drag. Texture is creamy but not thick. I have pigmented lips and usually steer clear of pinks because mostly they don’t show on my lips. Not this one. It’s pretty opaque and color my lips nicely. Really happy about that. The finish is semi satin, which is my favorite finish for lipstick.
I have really stubbornly dry lips and most lipsticks (regardless of price and brand) will dry my lips eventually. For the week I’m giving this lipstick a go, I don’t experience excessive dryness on my lips. Huge plus point. Moreover, it doesn’t accentuate any dry patches I happen to have upon application. Later on in the day, my lips still get dry. But not too much. Sure, exfoliating and prepping with balm is always a good idea, but I found that I can use this lipstick alone without too much prep. Miss couch potato slash lazy bum here approve!
Like I mentioned before, usually I don’t do pinks. My recent pink hauls was because, turns out, my husband prefers pink, girly-girl lip color on me. So, sometimes I indulge him. One of the reasons I don’t wear pink is that usually the color washes me off. I look really pale with pink lipstick. So I was pleased to find that Pinkalicious is very wearable for me. In fact, it gives me a fresh pop of color on days I don’t wear makeup other than powder. Suitable for lazy days. The color is also very safe to use daily. Mind you, where I work, every lipstick color is a safe everyday color (yes, black lipstick included). My work place is cool like that. But for more conservative workplaces, Pinkalicious will not make you stand out like a sore thumb. Thumbs up for that :p
As usual, this successful purchase makes me want to try other Color Show lipsticks (dang it). It doesn’t help that Maybelline lipsticks are so affordable bordering amazingly cheap! I bought mine at Luxola for IDR 28.000 (on discount. Retail is IDR 33.000).
Arm swatch. Pardon my veins 😅
Have you tried any of Maybelline Color Show lipsticks? Any color to suggest? Please let me know in the comment 🙂
Nude lips are something I always love, but couldn’t always pull off beautifully. After a phase of colorful lipstick spree, I went back to nude lipstick lemmings. Since Bourjois Rouge Edition Velvet was so popular (still is), I decided to get Nude-ist. I also managed to nudge my sisters to get nude lipsticks as well. I borrowed their liquid lipstick for this post. Three nude lipsticks I tried are Bourjois Rouge Edition Velvet in Nude-ist, Sleek Matte Me in Birthday Suit and LA Splash Smitten Lip Tint Mousse in Charmed. All nude colors, all matte finish, and all in liquid form. Hey, the liquid matte lipstick ship hasn’t sail yet. So here are a few photos I took of them.
Top: Bourjois REV Nude-ist; Middle: LA Splash Smitten Charmed; Bottom: Sleek Matte Me Birthday Suit
In terms of color, LA Splash Charmed is the palest. Without the appropriate makeup, this can look deathly. Is that even correct grammar? I also find this to be extremely drying. “This lipstick is so funny, it cracks me up”. Get it? *garing* Literally dried up my lips in seconds. So, the next time I tried this, I made sure to exfoliate my lips and prep my lips with lip balm beforehand. It didn’t crack as bad as before, but still it settled into the lines on my lips, and it showed. The color is beige with minimum pink, hence it looked pale on me. Texture is creamy, not too liquid-y. When it dries, it dries like nobody’s business. Difficult to remove, too. Some people may not like the fact that this stayed on your lips for a long time, fearing harmful effect on lips. My suggestion, just remove with oil-based lip remover. Be patient and be gentle. Don’t rub too harshly on your lips. Eventually it will come off, even if it takes a lot of coaxing.
Left: Sleek Matte Me Birthday Suit; Middle: LA Splash Smitten Charmed; Right: Bourjois REV Nude-ist
Moving on, Bourjois Rouge Edition Velvet Nude-ist is the most creamy. It’s my favorite in terms of texture. It’s comfortable on lips, too. Color has a hint of pink so it’s more wearable for me. I do have pigmented lips but this is opaque enough for the color to show. Although essentially it should dry matte, I found that it stayed a bit “wet” even after more than 10 minutes. Perhaps the formula vary slightly between colors because Pink Pong (from the same series) definitely dries matte.
Finally, Sleek Matte Me Birthday Suit. This (I think) has some brown in it that it’s not too nude. Very wearable. Texture is less creamy than Bourjois. This also don’t settle too much into lip lines. I think this is a very good choice if you’re looking for liquid lipstick. When I tried this, it dried matte and last okay, around 3 hours with drinking and eating.
And here are some photos of the lipsticks on lips. Didn’t have the picture of Sleek since, well, it’s not mine 😉 Maybe I’ll update sometime when I get to borrow it again.
Bourjois Rouge Edition Velvet – Nude-ist
LA Splash Smitten – Charmed
Gosh, I still need to learn to take proper photos. x___x Anyhow, I’d love to know your favorite nude lipsticks! Do drop a comment 🙂
I’ve been hearing good things about micellar water cleanser. As a self-proclaimed couch potato, I was obviously intrigued by the claim of easiness of removing your makeup. In my defense, I am now, once again, a mother of a little baby. You can imagine my (further) reluctance to use cleansing oil, toner and facial foam at the end of a long day while the baby is crying wanting to nurse. It’s just too much.
For a while, the only readily available micellar water makeup remover came with a price tag of IDR 200k. Hmmm… Not willing (yet) to dish that kind of dough for makeup remover.
Once I read about Maybelline Clean Express Miracle Water in (where else) Female Daily, I’m determined to get my hands on it because, well, the price! For only IDR 50k, I think it’s a steal! So, how did it fare in terms of removing makeup?
I must say I’m a bit surprised. It certainly did the job well. I used Covergirl Simply Ageless foundation and at the end of the day, using this, it came off quite thoroughly. I soaked two cotton pads to completely remove my makeup.
If you’re using heavier makeup, you’ll need more to completely wipe off the makeup. For my daily use, two, sometimes one cotton pad(s) will do.
Btw, I have used the pricier one, and I found them both more or less the same in terms of efficacy. In all fairness, I don’t have sensitive skin so that might contribute to my similar experience with these two brands.
Maybelline Clean Express Miracle Water is available in all Maybelline counters. Price is IDR 50.000.
Have you tried Maybelline Clean Express Miracle Water? Do drop a comment, I’d love to hear your thoughts!
Another day, another new product launch to attend. Ini udah beberapa minggu yang lalu, sih. Kali ini yang mengadakan adalah Citra. Merk body care lawas ini meluncurkan produk terbarunya, seri Citra Japanese Wakame dan Citra Korean Pink Orchid. Makanya nggak heran acara yang diadakan di Morrissey Hotel ini dekornya juga nuansa pink-hijau dengan sentuhan Asia. Eh, bahkan disajikan wakame salad. How appropriate.
Kalau ngomongin Citra yang terbayang pasti body lotionnya yang hits itu. My sisters for instance, are avid users of this particular brand. Nah, inovasi Citra kali ini menghasilkan lotion tubuh yang ringan, cepat menyerap dan nggak lengket. Mengapa susah-susah bikin lotion baru dengan karakteristik begini? Ternyata ini semua hasil riset, lho. Orang biasanya malas pakai pelembap tubuh karena lengket. Makanya Citra membuat pelembap tubuh yang nggak lengket, cepat terserap dan ringan ini.
Untuk membuktikan klaim “cepat menyerap” ini, dilakukan eksperimen yang bisa dicoba semua yang hadir. Satu tangan diolesi Citra Wakame lalu dilapisi pasir (iye, pasir beneran bok). Tangan yang satu lagi juga diolesi lotion biasa lalu dilapisi pasir juga. Terbukti, tangan yang dilapisi Citra Wakame pasirnya lebih mudah lepas dan dibersihkan. Citra Wakame bener-bener nggak lengket. Btw kita jadi kayak main di pantai, mainan pasir 😀
Habis itu nyoba juga tekstur Citra Korean Pink Orchid. Nah, kalau yang ini skincare untuk wajah. Tekstur krim-nya juga ringan, ngga lengket. Kandungan anggreknya dipercaya mencerahkan kulit secara alami. Wanginya juga ngga terlalu nyengat nih. Pretty soothing for my taste. Moisturizer ini juga sudah mengandung UVA dan UVB jadi bisa lah agak tenang pakenya karena sudah mengandung sun protection.
Looks thick? Careful, appearance can be deceiving 😉Setelah diratakan, poof! No trace at all
Buat yang penasaran sama ingredients-nya, silakan dicek foto-foto ini.
Adakah yang sudah coba juga kedua seri terbaru dari Citra ini? Do share!
I am currently in my 20th week of pregnancy. Couple of weeks ago I started noticing something. My skin seemed drier than usual. I found some areas on my face that are flaky. Today I realized that my fingertips started to show some flakiness, too. I knew that hormonal changes can do weird things to your body so that was my first thought. Upon scouring the internet I found that indeed hormonal and immune system changes during pregnancy is likely the reason behind skin changes.
Sadly, I’m not the most diligent person when it comes to skin and body care. Sure, I love makeup, but skin care is a whole other ball game. Now I have no choice but to pay more attention while at the same time looking for products safe enough to use.
My laziness hit all time high nowadays. The simple task of cleansing face at the end of the day has become such a chore. Now I’m relying on facial wipes to remove dirt and makeup (which now I rarely use) and non alcohol toner afterwards. In the morning I use booster/essence and then moisturizer. I’ve read that in order to combat dryness during pregnancy, a treatment of moisturizing facial mask once a week is recommended. I only plan on doing once a month/3 weeks. I hope it’s enough
I haven’t ask my obgyn or do a skin consultation but my suspicion is that although I continue to experience oiliness on my face (especially nose and T-zone), the flakiness suggests dehydration is taking place. This is frustrating 😦 I hope once I start religiously doing my skincare regime, my skin’ll get better.
These are the products I plan to use. Already trimmed and narrowed down since I can’t use too much. Shoo, shoo, dry skin!
Sheet Mask from The Face Shop, used once a monthMitu Shikada Facial Wipes
Viva Green Tea Face Tonic
Sulwhasoo First Care Activating SerumSK-II Stempower
Dua tahun belakangan ini suami lagi sering dapet rezeki dinas. Walau kerja, kita anggep rezeki aja, kan bisa jalan-jalan. Nah, masalahnye (keluar betawinya), yang ditinggal ini loh, nelongso. Lumayan ditinggal lima hari sampe seminggu. Komunikasi tergantung ada wifi apa enggak. Walau ada anak dua ribut di rumah, nggak ada suami tetep beda rasanya.
Nah, biar yang ditinggal (gue) nggak terlalu bete, I distract myself by compiling a shopping list. In my case it usually consisted of makeup or skincare. Kenapa gue bilang ini distracting? Saat bikin list-nya, gue jadi nggak mikirin nanti gimana sepinya pas ditinggal. Gue kalo bikin list oleh-oleh gini bisa lama, lho. Bukan apa-apa, dana soalnya terbatas, dan yang gue mau banyak 😀 Jadi gue list yang gue mau, research selengkapnya warna de el el yang gue mau, lalu edit sampe jumlahnya masuk akal. Kadang gue bikin list nggak cuma buat gue doang. Suami gue itu selalu bingung beliin oleh-oleh apa buat keluarga yang lain. Jadi biasanya gue bikinin juga list oleh-oleh massal ini: buat keluarga Sawo, keluarga Lenteng, anak-anak, temen kantornya segala. Cuma sampai situ? Nggak, lah. Gue list juga tiap item bisa dibeli di mana. Nama toko, areanya , kalau ada bahkan alamat. Ini buat memastikan itu oleh-oleh kebeli. Kalau dia nggak tau di mana tempatnya, bisa-bisa nggak kebeli. Manyun lah gue. Riset toko ini juga lumayan menyita waktu karena gue pastiin tokonya berada dekat hotel tempat dia nginep, atau deket lokasi meetingnya, atau deket lokasi nantinya dia jalan-jalan. Kadang kalau itinerary-nya lengkap, belanjaan gue-lah yang menyesuaikan dengan toko-toko yang accessible sesuai itin. Yep, I’m thorough.
Hasilnya
Adanya list belanja ini juga memotivasi suami gue untuk lebih sering komunikasi, entah via sms atau Face Time. Soalnya soon or later dia pasti butuh nanya ke gue soal list oleh-oleh ini. Misal, udah sampe toko tapi warnanya ngga ada. Biasanya udah gue kasih alternatif warna/produk juga, sih. Nah, biasanya dia akan menghubungi di saat-saat seperti itu. Kalau ada wifi gratis lumayan, bisa Face Time. Sekalian kangen-kangenan, dong. 😀
Setelah pak suami pulang dan kita bongkar oleh-oleh, rasa kangen dan kesepian selama ditinggal bisa terobati setelah liat belanjaan, hahahaaaaaa… Apalagi kalau semua berhasil kebeli, ikut lega karena riset gue berguna dan ngebantu. Aneh? Iya, kali. Biarin aja, deh. Everyone has their own coping mechanism and this is one of mine.
satu hal yang bisa gue sarankan untuk yang mau nitip oleh-oleh, buatlah list selengkap mungkin. Pikirkan juga, yang beli ngerti barangnya apa nggak? Salah satu alasan gue bikin list selengkap yellow pages adalah karena suami gue laki-laki (well, duh) yang nggak mudheng makeup atau skincare. List yang jelas akan mempermudah dia belanja dan nggak harus selalu bergantung pada sales assistant di toko. Kalau dirimu mau nitip beliin gadget ke orang yang nggak ngerti gadget, sama, kan? Siapin spek-nya supaya nggak salah beli. Nanti nitip aipon yang kebeli aipod kan situ juga yang bete? Selamat nitip!
I should really pay more attention to my skin. Let’s face it (pun intended), I’m already in my thirties. Surely twenty-something years of bad habits is going to catch up on me soon. Now, I know the most important thing is to rectify my lifestyle. I need to eat healthier (susah… Kurang niat nih), exercise more and drink plenty of water. While I’m working on those, I’m also gonna tweak my skin care routine to help my skin condition.
I’m more of a make up girl. I’m more willing to spend money on make up rather than skin care. Yes, yes, I know, shame on me. After all, what good does make updo without a good “base” or canvas, right? But I haven’t really been neglecting my skin care. I just don’t do it religiously enough.
My usual skin care routine is simple. In the morning, I use facial wash while in the shower. Afterwards I put on antioxidant serum and moisturiser (sometimes. I’m not really liking the texture of my current moisturiser so lately I’m inclined to skip it). If I’m going out I put on bb cream with spf, then my make up. At night, I use make up remover (if necessary), then cleansing milk and toner. After that I apply serum and eye cream. Done.
My ideal routine will be as follows:
Morning
Facial wash
Serum (I’m going to repurchase Estee Lauder Advanced Night Repair. Sample size 😀 *bokek*)
Lotion (really want to try Hada Labo)
Moisturizer/milk (might skip this, it can be too rich for my oily-combination skin)
Sunscreen (I’m eyeing Skin Aqua, or maybe I’m going to wait for Hada Labo, Indonesian version)
Make up (if necessary)
Night
Eye make up remover (if necessary)
Cleansing milk
Toner
Face wash (not sure where to put this step. Before or after toner?)
Serum
Lotion
Moisturizer/milk (again, optional)
Eye cream
It’s pretty intimidating for me. I get bored easily and most of the times i don’t have the patience to do all the steps. Let’s just hope I can stick to this routine.
Naaaah berhubung blush-blush baruku sudah datang (hello pretties!), kayaknya boleh mulai project baru nih. My bad habit is when I have new makeup item I tend to use the new items and forget about the others. Kasian kan, jadi gak tersentuh. Dan kan beresiko keburu expired itu lenongan.
So, alangkah bagusnya kalo para makeup itu dipakai bergilir. Jadi semua bisa kepake. Dirotasi, gitu. I got this idea from a beauty blogger (kayaknya sih banyak yang pake sistem ini, gue aja kuper) who rotates her blushes, one per week. Jadi minggu ini dia pake satu blush, blush berikut di minggu berikut, sampe (kalo sanggup) semua kepake at least sekali.
Kayaknya dalam beberapa minggu ke depan boleh nih diadopsi sistem ini. Or maybe I should do this with my lipsticks as well? Say, two for a week? Will update soon.
The Skinny Nerdy Mommy 