The Best Makeup Edit 2016

With the end of the year approaching, posts about yearly favorites are popping here and there. Just like NYE itself, it's a tradition. I use this chance to look back and see what products did I love this year. Though my focus was more on skincare throughout 2016, I got myself some lovely makeup bits that I absolutely adore. Even if my makeup stash is considerably small, to keep things simple, I'm excluding products that I bought last year.

I finally tried Nars for the first time this year, and I'm incredibly smitten. My base favorites are two items from Nars. Their Velvet Matte Skin Tint and Contour Kit have been a firm staple in my routine since July. Both are light-weight and looks like real skin, especially the skin tint. The contour kit can double up as blusher since it has slight rose-tint to it, very handy when I was feeling lazy.

I got another chance to nab some Jill Stuart item this year. While not all of their items are stellar in term of performance, I cannot deny the quality of their best selling item; the blusher. With build-able pigmentation and finely milled shimmer, this blush gives my cheeks a very radiant, flushing cheeks. Their nail polishes are also in top tier quality. They're priced roughly around the same of Essie nail polishes, but with even more elaborate packaging.

For the eye department, I'm sure if you're a regular reader, you would know how inescapably in love I am with Burberry Eye Color, they make great eyeshadow as well as highlighter. Kiko wow-ed me with their highly coveted eyeshadow stick which was my on-the-go eyes for busy morning, they apply and wear like dream.

For my first foray into the world of eyebrows, I trusted Bobbi Brown Natural Brow Shaper, it's a life-saver for brow-noob like me for its effortless application. Mascara is not an obligatory for my everyday makeup so I only picked one from Majolica Majorca this year. MajoMajo lives up to its name for being one of the best drugstore mascara in the market, this one instantly lifts and curl, while lengthening my lashes at the same time.

For lips, Clinique Pop Lips had taken over the last quarter of the year. Not only creamy, this lipstick is incredibly long-lasting and comfortable to wear. Lush Lip Scrubs are one 'blogger-made-me-buy-it' product, and I'm not disappointed! I can see why people love this delicious lip scrub, it thoroughly removes the unflattering flakes from my lips.

What have been your favorite beauty products this 2016?

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The Turqouise Concert Look

Tomorrow is finally the day that I've been waiting for, SHINee World Concert V! When speaking of SHINee, of course you'd be reminded of their iconic turqouise color (or what we call as pearslcent sky blue). Of course I feel compelled to incorporate the color into my makeup as well.

The Face

If you are a regular reader, you might know that I'm really loyal to my base routine, or another way to say my face routine is boring. The concert will take around 3 hours or more, so I need my base to stick all day along. Nars Velvet Matte Skin Tint locked with MAC Select Sheer Pressed Powder is my go to for long lasting, and sweat-proof face. For blush, I'm borrowing my mom's Estee Lauder Pure Color Envy in shade Pink Kiss. This bright pinkish mauve blush has golden speckles that adds beautiful glow to the cheek, plus it lasts a whole day.

The Eyes

is where the star of the show will be. First, I'll concear the dark area on my eyelids and under eye with Nars Creamy Concealer, then using cotton-buds, I will be packing Beyond Cream eyeshadow in Signature Alice, a powder blue pigment with green glitters that create a perfect shade of turqoise. Lastly, I will run Majolica Majorca Lash Aesthetic mascara for long, flutterly lashes.

Finishing Touch

Lately, I simply cannot got without a touch of Burberry Eyeshadow in Gold Pearl on my cheek-bones, of course I will be adding them as well. Another thing I've been crazy with lately is Clinique Pop Lips in Berry Pop, the formula of this lipstick is one of the best I've ever tried, pigmented, creamy, and non-drying, it's so hard to stop using this

I will probably be posting the look on instagram or facebook. What's your favorite concert look?

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Quick Impression 01 | Beauty

My last 'empty post' garnered quiet positive responses, so I thought why not do more 'mini-review' post? While I already have another batch of empties (I swear I'm not lying), I also have considerable amount of new product that I'm yet to talk about. This post will cover some new products that I bought between April and August.

Nars Velvet Matte Skin Tint in Cuzco (Medium 1.5); this semi-matte finish base has more coverage than expected, it evens up my skin tone, plus decently gets rid of my redness. It last incredibly well on my oily skin though I won't say it stops me from getting oily, I need to powder my face after around 5 hours or so (please note that where I live, the weather averages between 27 - 33°C all year around). The color is spot on, even closer than my Bobbi Brown's foundation, and I think with its extensive shade ranges (12 shades), everyone can easily find their color.And I can say now after around 3 months, I love this more than my BB foundation.

Verdict; love. it. so. much.

Nars Contour Kit in Paloma; the contour shade deep rose definitely has pinkish-rose going on, and I can imagine this can comes off as blush for people with fairer complexion or cool undertone. On my warm, medium-yellow skin, this is warm enough to chisel my (non-existent) cheekbones, and even then, I can safely use this as blush when I'm feeling lazy. I used it with Bobbi Brown Sheer Powder Brush and had slight difficulty, but then I switched to Zoeva Angled Cheek brush, and boy, does it did this color wonder (and my cheeks pretty bones). I use pink beige aka. the supposed highlight shade to my concealer, the bright color gives the area a lift but nothing too obvious. The two shades blend easily which is good for someone who just started 'attempting' contouring like me.

Verdict; love

Jill Stuart Layer Blush Compact in #06 Old Rose; I did review on this one last week, so you may check for full review. To keep it simple, this blush has the most beautiful subtle shimmer that makes the frosty finish actually looks natural. The color is subtle on my medium skin, but I can imagine this shows up more vibrant on fairer skin.

Verdict; love

Majolica Majorca Lash Aesthetic Mascara; a full review of this one is coming on, but in short, if you have; 1) oily lids that doesn't work at all with Maybelline mascaras, 2) short, sparse lashes, 3) problem with mascara that's hard to remove, this one is solution for you. It thickens and does lengthen my lashes, plus it's really easy to remove but still water-proof.

Verdict; love. it.

Bobbi Brown Natural Brow Sharper in Auburn; this is my first brow-product. I'm blessed with thick brows and frankly speaking, I'm quiet satisfied with them. The only thing I need to do is tidy them up and this does the job very well. The bristles is short but big enough, just the right size to shape my brows without 'overdrawing' them. The only problem I have is it tends to clump on the bristle when I pull it out so sometimes I ended up with too bold inner lashes (which is not pretty).

Verdict; like.

Burberry Eye Colour in Gold Pearl & Pale Barley; these two eyeshadows are buttery, silky smooth, applies evenly, and the pigmentation makes it impossible to go wrong. The formula allows this to be applied dry or wet which gives you more intense color. The subtle shimmer gives the eyeshadow beautiful glow and dimension, I think the color pulls differently under different light. I use Gold Pearl mainly for highlight and Pale Barley as all-over lid color.

Verdict; love. it. so. much. don't. question. my. love.

Fresh Sugar Lip Treatment in Ruby; I love to pull this when I'm feeling really, really lazy but still wants color on my lips, because I look dead otherwise. I'm really into its color and the delicious taste when I lick it, it's hydrating too. The downside is I often ended up with flaky lips despite how moisturizing it is.

Verdict; like it.

Have you tried any of these products? What do you think of them?

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New in | July's Beauty

I know I just hauled some pretty great things back in June, what's with Japan trip and all, but I could not resist to dump my money and get the economy rolling this month, because; a) it was sale, practically everywhere, b) I went to Singapore and their Sephora carries more than local Sephora can carry (at least at the moment, I'm still waiting until Sephora Indonesia carry as much). In conclusion; I did not resist.

Nars Contour Kit in Paloma; I justify this purchase because I still don't have any contouring product in my arsenal. Which, for someone who writes beauty blog, should be considered a crime (no?). My thought on this? Still can't say anything because I've only tried this a couple of times (maybe 2 or 3), but I've learned to use this with light hand and under natural light, not my room light (in case you're wondering, yes, there was a disaster).

Nars Radiant Creamy Concealer in Custard; not pictured, great, so smart, me! Anyway, I bought the travel size instead of full one, which was funny since I regretted not getting it back in Japan. I guess it can be attributed to some mixed reviews about this concealer, some says this great, some says not really. Hence the mini size, it's perfect for travel and popped inside my makeup pouch for on the go, and this way, I won't be wasting too much money if I ended up not liking it.

Fresh Sugar Lip Treatment Ruby; this is totally 'bloggers made me buy it' purchase. I keep on reading about Fresh everywhere, and as someone with desert-dry lips, it's only natural that I'm itching to get my hands on it (pretty packaging aside, oops, did I just reveal myself?). Like two products above, I haven't use this as much to give a proper judgement, mainly because I'm trying to use up my MAC Cosmo lipstick.

Kiehl's Ultra Facial Oil-Free Toner; I ran out of my Laneige's toner one morning and freaked out, because how am I supposed to sleep tonight without toner? Luckily, mom decided to go shopping on the afternoon! I visited Kiehl's counter instead of Laneige (because it was closer to Starbucks and I got free beverage coupon with me), spent 5 minutes choosing between this and blue herbal ones, before decided to go with this one. This smells a little bit iffy for me, but other than that, there's no major issue.

What did you purchase this month?

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6 Fuss-free Products for Summer

Indonesia is practically summer throughout the year, so technically, term 'summer makeup' does not exist. BUT, it also means I'm well versed with summer and struggle of keeping your makeup on within sweltering heat. These are 6 fuss-dree products that will ensure your face staying pretty through the worse of heat.

The Face

Summer means sweats, which means oily skin, and makeup slipping from your skin. It's important to keep your face matte, but, understandably with the importance put on glowy skin trend lately, you want to stay away from full-flat matte face.

Enter Nars Velvet Matte Skin Tint, despite its name, I think the finish of this one is closer to satin than complete matte. To keep my face feeling fresh from all the sweating that's bound to happen, I spritz my face with Jill Stuart Fruit & Aroma Mist Refresh Oil Control. Not only it cools my face and adds a little moisture, it also smells really summery! For the cheeks, I have had fun dusting this beautiful Jill Stuart Layer Blush in Old Rose on my cheeks for glowing, rosey cheeks.

The Eyes

My oily lids call for drastic measure, a long-lasting eyeshadow is a must, and when I feel to lazy to change my brushes in between application of eyeshadow, I find myself looking for Maybelline Color Tatto in Bad to The Bronze. This cream shadow might be super affordable, but its mightiness has been vouched for multiple times by almost all blogger all over the world.

The Lips

I always associate summer with glow and when it comes to lips, it means juicy lips. NYX Xtreme Shine Lip Cream in Candy Land leaves my lips looking very juicy and glossy without being too sticky, and when I want something more subtle, I pull my Dior Lip Glow in Pink for the perfect shade of pink, this also helps keeping my lips moisturized the whole day.

This has been my pick for fuss-free summer makeup. What are your picks?

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Eid Makeup Edit

Eid is here, again! It's that time of the year for big family gathering, to meet relatives I could not meet in regular basis, to eat lots of savory food rich with coconut milks, and cookies! It's probably one of the reason why I always looked forward for eid (shameless sweet-tooth here!). Even if there are people who dress themselves up nicely with really elaborate makeups, I personally love to keep everything simple during eid to translate what the day is supposed to symbolizes; rebirth, pure, and sincere.

The Base

First, I'm going to prime my face with Max Factor Facefinity All-day Primer to even out my skin tone and makes my foundation last longer. Next, I'm applying Nars Velvet Matte Skin Tint with barehand before applying blush by Jill Stuart to get that natural,pinky glow. Last, I lock everything in place using MAC Select Sheer Pressed Powder.

The Eyes

Since I'm going for 'natural look', what best option there is for me except for Burberry Eye Colour Wet & Dry Silk Shadow in Pale Barley, The legendary one-wash wonder eyeshadow that everyone and their mother seem to love. Before applying Majolica Majorca Lash Aesthetic Mascara that suddenly gives me lashes, I'm going to curl my lashes using Jill Stuart Eyelash Curler. To polish it up, I'm whipping out my first eyebrow product from Bobbi Brown which is their natural brow shaper. This brow mascara is very easy to use and, even for beginner like me.

The Lips

There will be lots of eating (rich! coconut! milk!) happening, and I resign myself to reapplication throughout the day. Bobbi Brown Lip Pencil in True Pink is light-weight, creamy lip liner that excels as lipstick even when worn on its own! Pink is not an easy color to pull on my skin but this particular milky-strawberry pink flatters my skin tone nicely.

What kind of makeup you like to wear on Eid day?

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Tokyo Beauty & Non-beauty Haul

Howdy, everyone! My Japan trip was over, it was tiring, it was fun. I met a lof of people that I haven't meet since I finished my study last 2014, and really wish I could stay there a little longer just so I can talk more with them. Anyways, I'm proud to say I managed to stay in budget! I bought all things I wanted, drop some that didn't turn out great, and was left with enough money to buy some more. There were some things I failed to pick up (coughnarscough) because I thought I could still encounter them at the airport (where everything is cheaper), turned out they're not available there. However, I'm generally pleased with my purchases! This post is gonna be long, and probably image heavy as well. I will try to keep it as simple as possible, add price and where I bought them when I remember!

Non-beauty Haul

Stocking and socks fromTutu ana; I came to know about Tutu ana back in 2012 and tried them first on 2013. I never turn back from them ever since. I'm not a fan of their underwear but I truly love their other sleepwear, and their footwear! They have the most affordable and cute, plus comfortable socks and stockings ever. I've long since getting rid of my stockings that aren't Tutu ana, their 60 denier stocking is my absolute favorite! I remember I still don't have that one in black color, and they have this buy 3 for 1000 JPY deal, so I snatched one of them and two socks with ribbons on the back. They're absolutely comfy and gorgeous, I am in love! with a pair of socks. Yes.

Tutu ana can be found at Shibuya, Shinjuku Alta, Harajuku Takeshita Street, and Kichijouji.

Gold bobby pins from Claire; Claire become friggin expensive in my country (I don't even know why), so even if I've been eye-ing this for months in local mall, I never have a heart to buy them. They're only 300 JPY so of course I did not resist. These bobby pins are more for photography purpose than practical purpose, since my hair is too thick for them. I already use them for some pictures, really stunning!

Claire's can be found at Harajuku Takeshita Street, Shinjuku Alta.

Greeting cards from Plaza; Plaza has so many cute and affordable greeting cards to the point I was too overwhelmed. In the end, I picked this one with glittery pink ribbon and pink stripes envelope because they're the most 'classic' compared to the rest.

Plaza can be found at Shinjuku Lumine 2, Ikebukuro Parco.

Captain America Tsumtsum from Disney Store; my Captain America obsession is not over, pal! I bought this hoping that I will encounter Winter Soldier's tsumtsum in the way but to my horror, it's sold out everywhere! I'm still keeping my fingers crossed that they have it in stock somewhere, because poor Captain will be lonely without Bucky :(

Disney Store can be found at Shinjuku, Harajuku Takesita Street, Shibuya, Ikebukuro Sunshine City.

Hair pin from Lattice and Necklace from Forever21; when I was looking for hair pins for my sister, I was attracted to this one. In the end, I got my sister the similar one with this but in pink and white. The necklace was bought because for someone who's totally obsessed with moon, I have no moon accessory with me (I know, the blasphemy!). When it comes to necklace, I choose the one with simple pendant so this crescent moon necklace is really perfect for me.

Lattice can be found at Ikebukuro Sunshine City

Drugstore beauty haul

Shiseido Senka Perfect Liquid; I'm running out of my Perfect Liquid at home so I added this to my wishlist for obvious reason. This is my favorite makeup remover ever, not gel, not water, not oil, just liquid. Unlike oil that feels lukewarm (and sometimes greasy) on the skin, Perfect Liquid gives a cooling sensation and pleasant smell. It does absolute great job at removing my makeup without stripping it from moisture.

Majolica Majorca Lash Aesthetic Mascara; Majolica Majorca's greatness when it comes to eyelashes is already well-known. I'm sure you have heard about it once or twice when people talk about Japanese mascara. Despite wanting to try this for so long, I never buy it simply because I heard they're hard to remove (had bad experience with benefit it's real mascara, so, nope. No, thank you). However, this one is marketed as easy to remove so I bit the bullet and purchased this. HOLY, I was not disappointed! This mascara gives my lashes everything it needs from volume to length. I'm absolutely smitten, especially considering how cheap this mascara is; 1200 JPY.

Mentholantum Water Lip; for some reason, my dry lips refuse to befriend readily available and easily accessible lip balm like Nivea or TBS. It decides to be picky by choosing Kiehl's or L'Occitane, and as much as I love those two, hello, that's a lot for just a lip balm?? I remember using this cheap as chips lip balm ( wasn't even 200 JPY) back in winter 2013, and it did a great job at keeping my lips moisturized.

Alice Body Mist in Fresh Raspberry; I bought this one in Disney Store half on a whim (half because I wanted to get any Alice things while I was at Disney Store, so this was not entirely unplanned). For someone who's quiet picky with scent, I'm glad this scent with Alice theme didn't turn me off. I used this to keep myself smelling fresh throughout the trip, which was necessary since I was practically out for almost 12 hours everyday while I was there.

Jill Stuart

I visited Jill Stuart counter 3 times. The first time to buy the blush and crystal lucent powder, I dropped the later because I didn't like how it looked like on my skin. The 2nd was to buy my mother's perfume and hand cream. The 3rd was to get the nail polish. As always, Jill Stuart's BA are so friendly, they gave me lots  of samples. I'm not sure I can ever finish them since I still got some samples from last year left.

Jill Stuart can be found at Shinjuku Lumine 2, Shibuya Parco, Ikebukuro Seibu.

Layer Blush in 06 Old Rose; Jill Stuart blush has been in my wishlist since forever, probably even before I started crushing on Jill Stuart itself. The only thing that put me off from buying them was my inability to try them myself. I know they're not the most pigmented blush around , I'm worried they won't show up on my deeper skin tone. The BA kindly let me try this one and even then she needed to pile this up few layers until it show up, but, oh boy, the result is so pretty; a faint blush that gives a very natural flush to my skin. And the packaging, just look at that gorgeous packaging, I really can't fault Jill Stuart when it comes to this department.

Nail Lacquer R in 04 Pink Drop; I have enough glittery Jill Stuart nail polishes to last me a lifetime, so this time, I wanted the one with no glitter/shimmer. After choosing between this one and the other in 05 Love Potion, I decided to go with 04 Pink Drop because this one is more pink than Love Potion (which is redder and I already have a deep red polish). Under certain light, this polish shows up peachy-pink that it flatters my skin nicely.

Burberry Beauty

lo and behold, I finally got my hand in my favorite makeup brand ever. Burberry beauty is my - excuse my language - makeup wet dream. They can come up with crappy products (not that they have) and I will still proclaim my thousand of years love for them. The counter I visited was at Seibu Ikebukuro. While the BA was not as friendly as The Nars' or Jill Stuart (understandable since I'm obviously a foreigner), she was helpful and I had fun trying out different eyeshadows.

Eye Colour Wet & Dry Glow Shadow in 001 Gold Pearl; I was in serious lack of inner corner color in my eyeshadow stash, most of my eyeshadow are deep brown or chocolate which is more appropriate for outer corner, lid, and crease color. The camera didn't do the color justice, in real life, the eyeshadow is vibrant color of gold. I haven't try them on myself since I returned but I can tell I will love this because as far as I tried this on the counter, it's soooo buttery soft.

Eye Colour Wet & Dry Silk Shadow in 102 Pale Barley; the cult classic, the cult favorite. I don't think I need to explain more about this holy grail of one swipe wonder eyeshadow. I cannot describe exactly how it looks on my lids; not too vibrant but my lids just glow in very subtle, beautiful golden-taupe color. It will be perfect for the day when I want to feel classy yet too lazy to make an effort.

Other high-end beauty haul

The Nars counter I visited was at Ikebukuro Seibu, Lush at Shibuya (very, very cramped). Bobbi Brown and Gucci was at Haneda Duty Free Store, and Chanel Polish was purchased at KLIA.

Nars Velvet Matte Skin Tint in Cuzco; first, let me tell you my completely wonderful experience at Nars counter in Seibu Ikebukuro. The BA was very friendly (she thought I was foreigner who live and grew up in Japan), she helped me choosing the right shade, apply everything to my face from skincare to finishing powder, engage me in very friendly conversation. I truly regret not getting her name because she was truly a God sent! Under her tender care, I managed to last without touching up from morning to night (well, she applied everything from skincare to primer to finishing powder and concealer). After using this for a day, I have to say I absolutely love the lightweight texture and coverage, it wasn't as sheer as people made it to be, and managed to conceal the problematic areas fine. I'm excited to get more use out of this!

Lush Lip Scrub in Bubblegum; I keep hearing great thing about Lush' lipscrub so for me it was logical to snag one of this while I could. I had thought it was 1000 JPY without tax so I was pleasantly surprised to know it's the price with tax. The smell was too sweet for me but doesn't mean I don't like it, it smells more like fanta than bubblegum, tho? I'm yet to try this one because I need to take proper pic of this before I use it (blogger problem).

Bobbi brown Natural Brow Shaper & Hair Touch Up in 7 Brunette; let me make a confession; I never tend to my brow until recently (Tannya jabbed me at this on my last post lmao). I just wasn't sure about my brow since I always had bangs but since I changed my hair style, I realized why people are making fuss about brows. They are absolutely vital to your look (I was years late to realize this). I wasn't sure what to get for my brow, left with spare time at the airport (pretty much down because Nars wasn't available at Haneda Duty Free), then wandered to Bobbi Brown Counter. The counter was empty so I had the luxury of trying so many products without being bothered. I ended up with this brow mascara(?) which was easy to use for beginner like me yet still leaves my brow polished.

Gucci Guilty Pour Homme EDT; God, I know I told myself that I won't buy anymore perfume this year but after tying this last February at local Sephora (each time whenever I visit that certain Sephora), and this was sold 7400 JPY in Japan, almost half the price in my country,I cannot  possible resist. Despite the amount of people who said this smells generic, I naturally cannot resist any perfume with Amalfi Lemon as its top note.

Chanel La Vernis Nail Color in 665 Vibrato; this one is probably the only impulsive purchase. I had about 13.000 JPY left to spare when I was at KLIA on my final transit and had the urge to buy something! For some reason, no makeup interest me, not even Bobbi Brown and Laneige andMAC conter. I kept being drawn to Chanel and Dior counter, mainly their polishes rack. At first I was about to purchase either one of Dior's Masai, Wonderland, or Mirage. But after trying them one, they just weren't right. I left Dior counter to Chanel's and saw this vivid blue polish, then remembered for the overwhelming amount of blue clothes I owned, I only have one blue nail polish, and that one is with glitter, and  is really hard to remove. Long story short, I ended up with Vibrato since this can go with deeper blue or even bright burgundy that made up my wardrobe.

Those are the things I bought in Japan, I hope I'm not missing anything beauty related (tho I know I miss things I bought in Muji, some snacks, and that one clothes I bought at Earth Music and Ecology). Have you been to Japan? What do you want to buy there?

psst, I recommend their mascaras!

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