BH Cosmetics highlighter brush and FOTD featuring Illamasqua products

Do you know the brand BH Cosmetics? No? A little while ago I didn't know them either, but I got curious and now I'm thankful I ventured into their realm. Now I own palettes, lipglosses, bases, brushes, brushrolls. And I love them all!

Here I'm showing you a great highlighter brush. Many use blush or overall brushes to apply highlighter, but personally I don't fancy this method. If you want soft features and achieve it fast then it's ok to use them, but I like my brushes to be precise. It's no problem for me to work longer for the finish. If you want sharply contoured face you can't run around with a huge powder or round blush brush, right? I hate long bristle brushes....they bend everywhere but where I want them. @_@

This highlighter brush is smaller than any blush brush but bigger than concealer brushes. I'd say its diameter is similar to the Sigma P84 Precision Angled brush (here), just the handle is shorter. The bristles look long, but they are packed tightly and pick up and place powder/creme/liquid nicely and precisely. *sigh*

 It retails for USD 3.95 which is like whoaaaaaa!!!! and BH Cosmetics always has sales on their website. Like right now too! ;)

If seeing the price you think the quality sucks then let me assure you, it's gooooood!!!

FOTD
Nothing special, I just felt like wearing something not so boring. It's summer, after all!

Ok, it's a half-faced FOTD, and sorry for the acnes and lousy application....>.<

Products used:

Face:

• Illamasqua Powder Foundation in PF145 (review here)
• Missha The Style Art Designing Pore Silky Boomer
• Holika Holika Dark Circle Stealer Stick Cover SPF30 in 02 Pink Beige
• NARS The Multiple Mini in Palm Springs

Eyes:

• UDPP Original
• Illamasqua Fundamental Palette (yellow and purple colors)
• Illamasqua Powder Eye Shadow in Succumb
• KATE eyebrow pencil in BR-3
• K-Palette -1 day tattoo- Real Lasting Eyeliner 24h waterproof 
• Kiss Me Heroine Make Long & Curl Mascara

Lips:

• Illamasqua Sheer Lipgloss in Provoke (here) 

Elizabeth Arden Color Intrigue Gel Eyeliner with Brush

Got it from Daituf in a love/birthday package I mentioned before (here).

This post is long overdue, but the time that has passed since i got this liner is exactly what makes this product an exceptional one. 

I see tons of reviews of high and low end gel liners, and one of the statements that make them all the same is that you need very little every time use it, thus the amount you get in the jars is impossible to use up before it dries out. And oh yes, they all dry out eventually, some does so in record time, others need more time, but the same end befalls all of them, without fail.

Well, nowadays I don't use this Elizabeth Arden liner that often, but when I do, I pay attention to screw the cap securely. The less air the product itself contacts with, the longer it takes to dry out. 

A good example for drying gel liners is my very first gel liner from 2009, the KATE one. I loved it so much! It didn't budge, smudge, made a streakless line, was truly black, etc, etc. But after a year or so it decided to retire from serving me and dried out. Creamy texture said bye-bye to me and crumbling took its place. After 2 or 3 tries of application with some helluva fallout I gave up and deemed it trash.

However, this Elizabeth Arden Color Intrigue liner found me a little later that the KATE one, but it still works and is still creamy. It hasn't dried out! And this is the year 2012 I'm writing this! 

I know, hygiene fanatics must be screaming in pain that I haven't thrown it out yet, but unless it smells foul or my skin acts weird or gets irritated I will not throw away anything =D

The color is actually brown,but I'd say it's good for a not-pitch-black black too! 

Texture is very creamy and glides on easily.

It's not waterproof, but surprisingly it stays put even on my oily lids or during summer. 

I never expected this to be anything special, but it won me over.

It sells for around 12 dollars on ebay and holds 3.5 grams of product, which is a looooot =) Too bad it's discontinued.

FOTD

I tend to come up with pretty lame titles, right? HAHA

You know, I like reading. After Harry Potter (oh yeah, I'm a fan LOL) I took a break..until the Twilight saga. Finishing all four books (in like a week) I craved for more and got hooked on urban fantasy books.

As I'm fed up sitting in front of my laptop staring at .PDF books, I wanted to buy real books. You now, in physical form. It's waaaay more comfortable to hold that sacred paper in your hands!^^

The other day I stumbled upon half.com! OMIGOD! It's like Heaven! I was hauling madly, thinking "okay, there's ground shipping, but at checkout I'll get more summed up for international" For dirt cheap I accumulated tons of books (okay, not tons, but a lot LOL)....

Imagine my horror when I found out it was a US ONLY shop. damndamndamndamn!

Thus, finally, I got myself introduced to parcel/mail forwarding aka concierge services. I visited quite a lot pages, lemming the prices, trustworthiness, look of the page, etc.

I have to say, this service is pricey! Okay, considering how many brands I'd like put on my hands while huge sales, it's still cheaper. But ATM I'm not gonna fork out 40-50 bucks only for shipping....Plus monthly fees, consolidation, sometimes handling fee per package and so on.

Not to mention custom taxes since it's import and these companies ain't write lower amount on the box just becoz I'm asking nicely.

If my complete order is some housand dollars, then I'm likely to pay duty fees too @_@

Until I have a job I won't use this service....

Good news is I'm going to job interviews Tomorrow. To the ministry. Two interviews. And hopefully one job LOL I sooooo want to be the one they choose! T_T

And now, onto today's "no foundation" FOTD:

wow I'm smiling! bwahahahahhaah

Please, excuse my messy hair! ˇ.ˇ

Face:

nothing

noname blush

Eyes:

MAC Patina

Givenchy 9 color eyeshadow

KATE gel liner

MUFE Aqua Smoky Eyes

MAC Studio Finish Concealer

NYX jar Concealer

Essence Eyebrow stylist set

My giveaway prize & FOTD & Bourjois swatches

First of all, the book I won arrived Today! YEY! Previously I mentioned that I had won a book giveaway on Aik's blog!

mmmm Can't wait to start reading it! But first I want to finish the one I'm reading ATM.

It's actually a signed copy! And came directly from the author, Dakota Banks!

Thank you miss Banks! ^.^

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As I went out Today for some shopping (and I mean beauty shopping), and dear Sun cooperated, I took some photos of my makeup:

The weather is snowy and it's friggin' freezing outside, so I went for a cold-ish look.

FACE: Skin79 BB cream Diamond Collection Luminous Pearl

            Sofina Primavista Clear Cover Base

            Kevin Beautymaker Magic Foundation Pen

            RMK Liquid foundation

            NYX Concealer in a jar

            MAC Studio Finish Concealer

CHEEKS: Oriflame Giordani Gold Mosaic Splendor Powder

            Oriflame Visions Pearl Shimmer Poder for Face

EYES: I Nuovi metallogy eyeshadows (Champagne and Oxide)

            KATE Gel Eyeliner

            L'Oreal Accord Naturels (for eybrow)

            MUFE Aqua Smokey Eyes

LIPS: MAC Lipglass (Spirited)

Sooo, bought some stuffs at Müller that I'm not showing here as they are presents, and took the chance to swatch a few things.....and I have photos too! wooow My first attempt at swatching in store! LOL The SAs didn't even care about me. Maybe next time I won't be this lucky.

At first I wanted to swatch the eyeshadow quad of Guerlain's spring collection, but it wasn't there. Maybe it's not supposed to be at counters yet? But the plate with with stock photos and all was up, so where was the actual product? o_O

Thus I swatched the new Kiss Kiss glosses, but didn't make notes of the numbers, as it was labeled as new shades. And here at home, checking the Guerlain site I can't find what were those shades....

No, they weren't the pretty lacy Xmas edition ones.

Stupid me! I should have had to write down the numbers! X_X

BUT! I did some work and swatched almost all of the Bourjois Smoky Eyeshadow Trios!

The ones on my hand: Gris Dandy, Mordore Chic, Rose Vintage, Violet romantic, Bleu Rock, Vert Trendy (From top to bottom, left to right):

The colors came out so crappy! And washed out! So sorry! Wish I could show you how the last two trios (Bleu Rock and Vert Trendy) looks in real life!!!!

As I started swatching the first ones, I almost lost all hope that these worthed a penny, but damn! The blue and green trios are so awesome! Never seen anything like them! *____*

I tell you, if you have a chance, go and see for yourself!

I usually restrain myself from this two colors, but daaaamn! I'm so gonna buy these!

Bleu Rock and Vert Trendy have some golden/green/blue sheen to them, under the main color. Think of....uhm butterfly? You know, those exciting, mixing colors on their wings!?

I was mesmerized!

They are ~£7.30 each (dunno the USD) and they well worth the money! At least the blue and green ones do. The other variations were either boring or sheer.

Kanebo KATE Glam Trick Eyes BR-1 review and EOTD

I know this isn't new, but it earned a review focusing only on this palette, no comparing, whatsoever. Oh, and the new fall palette from KATE....I spent my 'makeup' money on some things else, thus I'll be the last one on net doing swatches. Dunno when. Bwahaha Sorry, being a college student makes be poor (and I mean it) >.<

The shadows: There are 5 shadows. 1 eyeliner (black), 1 highliter (white), 2 shadows (browns) and another ?eyeshadow? which I call 'sprinkle-on' (golden) because it's rather a pack of golden sprarkle, not an actual eyeshadow, unless you want a hardly-there-glittering-effect.


See the yellow sparkles in the black liner? Pretty. It doesn't show up on skin though. And, it looks rather greyish brown than black.
The highlighter is okay. Isn't too white/pigmented, so you won't look like a clown with chalky white eyelids. It's perfect for usage under eyebrows.
The browns. The upper one is a more dark shade and a bit colder tone. I regret not taking a photo when it was new. With usage, the upper particles wore down and became this dark in the case. It was more light. The lower one is a more light and warm brown. Beige, I'd say.

Swatches above without flash, in order: D, C, B, E, A. See below the diagram for making sure which one is which. The texture is pretty fine, like satin and they are well pigmented, no need to stroke it forever to get a decent color.

Well, that's the recommended look by KATE. But you know, "No more rules" HEHE Obviously it's for Asian eye shapes, but who says a European can't wear it the same way? Plus, you can combine it however you want.

Now, onto the look I created following the diagram:

The black and both browns blended perfectly. I smudged the eyeliner, and it became really light. I should have added another layer.

Oh, and put a little gold glitter to the center of my eyelids.

See? There's hardly any trace of black. Ugh. I LOVE lining black my eyes.

Oops, seems like I couldn't reach the roots of the lashes properly. That happens when you use fat brushes for applying mascara. Used Max Factor False Lash Effect and it sucks! The wand is foolproff, okay (or maybe I'm used to it) but the formula does no volumizing...and talking about false lashes. Don't make me laugh!

Tight lined with MUFE Aqua Eyes 0L...and a bit light brown (C) from the palette to the lower lash line and that's all.

See the white part under my eyes? The outer corner? You guessed right. Concealer for my dark circles HAHA Used mineral concealer (which I found a bit hard to blend) and foundation on top of it, and I tell you, it didn't look white. Photos see everything...and emphasize every little flaw =D

EDIT: okay, now I'm confused. Why are some of my pics clikable for full size and others (actual eye shots) not? *grrr*

Kanebo KATE Reflect Mirror Eyes

Kanebo's young and fresh line, KATE came out with its fall releases too, and that includes a new eyeshadow combination: Reflect Mirror Eyes.

Reflect Mirror Eyes consists of 3 colors to create a reflection effect. So I bet they must be nicely sheeny.

They cost about $14 and come in 8 variations. I think I'll buy one myself....maye a purple one...or the blue? Dunno. But I'll surely review it.

Kanebo KATE Gel Eyeliner vs. Make Up For Ever Aqua Eyes

Well, for a while now I've wanted to do my piece of review on these products, but just never made decent photos while putting up my makeup, so I could show how these perform on my eyes. Well, I have positive and negative point for these two liners.

Let's start with KATE.

Kanebo Kate Gel Eyeliner (BK-1)

The Kanebo Kate Gel Eyeliner is a smooth and easy-to-use eyeliner which is perfect for daily creation of the charming eyes. The black color of such makes the eyes look sharp and natural and super smooth, and it won't smash, fall off or retain winks during the day. Unlike the liquid eyeliner with shape head only, the brush coming with the eyeliner is ideal for drawing different sizes of eyeliners suiting different occassions.

You can buy it for $7 and above...depending on where you get it from.
Wherever you go, you hear only positive things about this product. And I can't say anything bad either! For your money, you get a 2.5g gel in a nice little matte glass jar, and a liner brush.

Some stated this is the best liner brush ever. About this...I have no idea. I used mainly pencils before and some liqiud liners with those tiny, pointy tips. So, all I can say about the brush, it's exellent! Holds hard, so I can draw whatever and however I like, without strays to mess up my work. The wand is okay, no problem there either, handles well. Purely shiny black with only "KATE" written on it.

Before I bought it, made a thorough research, reading every review I could find netwide, so I wouldn't be surprised or worse, disappointed. Thus I knew the amount of product is very little, so the jar would be a small size also. In spite of all, I was still shocked. It's soooo tiny!

See? Compared to my hand it really is small! hehe It looks like it would not last long, but I tell you, you need very little when using, so no need to run and buy a replace for....at least a year. I think. Or more. I don't know. I've been using it for only 2 months and such a small amount is missing that I'm always amazed!

Now, that we've seen the posite, take a look at the negative:

Make Up For Ever 0L ($17)

I wouldn't dare say this is a "negative" eyeliner, but truthfully, compared to Kate this performs less.

These waterproof eyeshadow and eye liner pencils contain a unique formula that adheres to the eyelids and resists water even under the most extreme conditions, without running or fading.

This received a lot of positive feedback, some claimed as a HG, was said to be the utmost waterproof pencil. Honestly, I was a bit disappointed. Although it beats most of my previous eyeliners, if not all of them. I really, really like MUFE, even though it's almost impossible to buy them here. Only way is through ebay, but there are only a few stuffs there and most doesn't ship outside the US. hah! uhm, back to topic.....

I'm sure the endless ravings made me expect Aqua Eyes to be a never-was-before-perfect stuff. Well, it is a long staying, somewhat water resistant liner that finally can be applied on waterlines too! It stays put in the summer heat, but i recommend no rubbing, this is no superglue to held against anything. You know, everything runs on my eyes, thus I never line my waterlines. That's suicide, it'd run down completely in 5 minutes. But with MUFE Aqua Eyes I can finally line there too! YEY It smears a bit only at the inner and outer side of my waterline. But that I can put up with. It doesn't fade either, only in inhuman summer heat, when I'm exposed to fire sunshine and sweat myself away. Behind glasses it's not eays to fight against running eyeliner and mascara.

Above are the swatches of both liners. The thinner line is only one swipe while the thicker/darker is made by several swipes.

The difference is conspicuous. KATE's gel eyeliner is more of a deep black. No wonder the 0L in Aqua Eyes stands for matte black. I prefer pitch black colors. It's more dramatic. hehe

Actually you can make MUFE draw darker lines pressing it a bit ( I swiped lighthandedly), but you might hurry, because it's rather creamy and once it sets, there's no way you can add an extra layer (unless you want to ruin everything).

There's no such problem with the KATE one though.

I haven't tried Aqua Eyes as an eyeshadow yet, but sooner or later I have to see how it holds as an e/s. I doubt it will fail me.


All in all, these are pretty good liners. Kanebo's gel liner is a better deal IMO. I'd say it's slightly better than Make Up For Ever's and for a waaaay cheaper price tag!

In the end, I reach for Kate almost every day, but Aqua Eyes, well I save it for distressed times.

If you happen to buy any of them, Kate Gel Eyeliner comes in 7 colors: blue, green, brown, black, metallic black, golden and silver (last two ones are also metallic shades).

MUFE Aqua Eyes has 25 colors which is impressive...and tempting !=D

Kanebo KATE Liquid Foundation

Kanebo KATE Liquid Foundation can cover pores and ruddy areas, and brighten your complexion. The sebum absorbing powder in Kanebo KATE Liquid Foundation helps prevent makeup melting and maintain a smooth complexion all day long.

I love this foundation!^^ And as I saw everyone does around the net. It's cheap (bought it for US$13 at Gooddealer) and does what it promises!

I don't know about covering redness, since I don't have any red spot, thankfully, but I do know it feels like nothing's on the face, stays put all day long not going anywhere, and by 6 hours my skin doesn't look dull. It stays "smooth".

I use it mainly under my cheekbones and jawline, on the sides of my nose, since I use 2 foundation every day....to play with the shadows.

It blends perfectly. I got it in OC-D. Thought it'd be a perfect darker shade, but when I opened my mail I was shocked.

It looks too dark compared to my skin....

And yellow....but WoW!!! A miracle! Maybe I could use it as an overall foundation, now that I got a bit tanned.

It has sunsreen too! SPF18 (not 15, neither 20...it's 18 LOL never seen it before). So this would be wise to do since my lighter foundation has no sun protection #_#

I'd recommend it to anyone. Good for dry skin because it moisturizes (never hurt my jawline which is dry), and good for oily skin = no break out on my oily nose