The Face Shop Haul

I'm a bit here or there about The Face Shop. I was elated when I found one in Perth and dipped into the Korean products I'd never tried before; I loved them, but slowly as I tried products, they were pretty much... Maybe average with a bit of appeal of Asian skincare being available in Perth. I swore to their BB cream, and I've tried a range of products from both their skincare and from their makeup, and I will admit that some are pretty damn good. But for some reason, I can't bring myself back to that level of fandom I once had. Either way, on the way home, I passed through Piccadilly Arcade and The Face Shop just seemed to invite me in, and give them a second chance.

I only picked up four items: two mascaras (one is a base), an eyebrow powder kit and a face sponge for cleansing, but I always get given chocka samples, and this time, a free toiletry bag too! Lord knows what I was thinking when I decided I needed more mascaras, but those were what I looked at and what I decided I wanted. I had tried out one of their waterproof fibre mascaras before and that was actually fantastically shocking; it gave me dark, full, long lashes with a curl and didn't smudge, but it started clumping pretty quickly which was it's downfall. However, these weren't that much more than drugstore mascaras (in Perth at least, and actually cheaper), so I picked up FACEit All About Mascara Base (01) and FACEit All About Mascara Long Lash (05). They're both fibre mascaras although I didn't actually realise the base was one too until I opened it up at home (it didn't seem like one in store based on the tester), but I like that too. Versatility to use with other not-so-building mascaras. 

More eyebrow products, I know, I know. But I haven't actually had a new powder for a while, and the one I had previously (Benefit Brow Zings) no longer really matches and is getting a bit groddy. The Face Shop one looked pretty nifty, I liked the colours, and I've never tried an Asian brow product, so hey, let's give it a go.  

Finally, I was wondering around the last legs of the store, wondering what else I "needed", and, while I loved the lipsticks, I decided they were a bit too pricey for now and went to look at the nifty tools that The Face Shop had to offer. I was contemplating on purchasing the face cleansing brush (don't remember the exact name), but it was a small, round, flat top brush that you use with your cleanser to help clean your pores better. But then I thought hey, didn't I want a face cleansing sponge for a while? And I found they offered one, so I chose it (probably pick up the brush next time round, it was so cute!) and was good to go. It was actually moist when I took it out of the packaging, I suppose to make it look more appealing being fluffy? But I will have to rinse it out before use because of the slight chemical smell doesn't seem too wonderful.

All-in-all, I'm quite please. Didn't go super extravagant, but picked up some essentials, so I don't think I'll be all that let down either way. Perhaps not a love for now, but a reliable friend? 

Sasa Haul

God, don't you just love it when a package you ordered arrives when you're in the midst of a big spending/haul ban? Well, not necessarily a ban per sé, more like I don't really have the allocation of funds for a self-absorbed hauling. I originally went browsing on Sasa searching for raved about mascaras as I thought it was a bit pricey to splurge on the YSL Baby Doll Mascara in this moment of college-student-poorness (pre-spending and -haul ban, mind), and what caught my eye was the KOJI Lash Specialist Volume mascara. And, of course, I went through the "clearance" section and "new" section like I usually do whereby I spotted another interesting mascara by FITS called Megaholic Wax Curl Keeper WP and the cute Suki Moisturize CC Cream. 

It had been a while since my last Sasa purchase, so I had a couple items still waiting in my favourites until I gave in and put them in my cart such as the Tony Moly Broccoli Sprout Cleansing Cream and also waiting until a previous favourite came back in stock like the Skin Food Peach Sake Toner. Well I guess the stars aligned, because this "casual browsing" was turning more and more into "confirm payment".

Tony Moly Broccoli Sprout Cleansing Cream

Does Tony Moly not have the cutest packaging ever? Mind you, it's also pretty ridiculously large and sometimes inconvenient... or misleading like their Egg Pore series which, considering the size of the packaging, is mostly empty. This product, however, is pretty damn weighty at 200ml and packed to the brim. I purchased this as, well, a cleansing cream as the name implies, to remove the makeup off my face before I do a full cleanse. 

Skin Food Peach Sake Toner

I love their entire Peach Sake line. It smells wonderful and works wonderfully too. This was my favourite toner, and when I sadly finished it, I went back to Sasa to repurchase and it was no longer available, neither on other sites - so hard to find! Luck was on my side, however, what timing I would check Sasa after such a long period and it be back on the site. 

Suki Moisturize CC Cream in Shade 01

I've never actually heard of the brand Suki and searching around the interwebs for the review of this product were not too helpful. Simply because there weren't many at all! It wasn't all that expensive, and I'm very much in love with the idea of a CC cream and I really quite liked the shape of the bottle... So here's hoping that my faith was not misplaced in this mildly adventurous product.

FITS Megaholic Wax Curl Keeper WP mascara

Good god, can you say ridiculous packaging? Do you see in the picture where the mascara is? And next to it? That's a big flipping piece of plastic packaging attached. But it's cute, and thin, so maybe forgiveable. Honestly, what grabbed my attention was not really the goofy cute illustration of the woman with bazongas and ridiculous mutant eyelashes, but that it's a wax mascara. I mean, I know mascaras have wax in them, so it made me curious why the wax in this one was so important. Oh and the "WP" in the name is for waterproof.

KOJI Lash Specialist Volume mascara

KOJI has never let me down, despite not having a heap of products by them. So this mascara intrigued me what with the numbers (apparently a 4.3mm is the size of the brush?) and the unusual square brush. So what the hey, might as well test another mascara out, nevermind the other mascaras I have that I still need to try. But again, look at the ridiculous packaging. And the brush wand itself is like, two thirds of the entire mascara. That's not what I mind so much, just something to keep in mind. Expectations of what you'll get and what not.

I've ordered from Sasa a buttload of times (to use the medical term). My packages have always arrived in a timely manner and each product well handled (comes in a box with packing peanuts and products are wrapped in bubblewrap). I've even made it to VIP status, giving me a discount on each purchase I make (as well as VIP-only specials). And yeah. I guess Sasa is a nice starting point for those interested in (mostly) Asian skincare and makeup, everything ships nicely and in a timely manner and, in my experience, I've never had anything go wrong or any issues. So here's hoping the products themselves are just as good.

August Favourites 2013: The Convenience Month

Good lord, this year is going by so quick, how the hell is it already September? But I'm sort of glad for it, I just want to be done with uni for the year and then settle slowly into Christmas celebrations already. This month really has not been all that kind, what with my studies finally coming in full swing, losing a job, having to baby sit a very needy cat (and he's still here) and dance exams. So maybe it's good, we're finally shooting off into the final third of the year. 

I didn't have a huge range of favourites this month, everything seems so busy. So most of the products were really for convenience, a helping to look polished really easily. I only included one skin care product this month, and I used it when I could, just for an extra helping for my skin so it doesn't get too out of whack.

Maybelline Fit Me Shine-Free Foundation Stick in Natural Beige (220)
I mentioned this product in a previous post, and I'm not too sure that this can be counted as a favourite. I more used this just for convenience, but considering I basically used it every single day since I purchased it, I thought I could put it into my favourites. It's very easy to apply, just strategically place a couple war stripes on your face and blend with your fingers. Kind of true of all Maybelline foundations I've tried though, it seems to just not quite blend and more sit on top of your skin. The lasting power isn't too great either, but it provides enough coverage and you can carry it with you for a touch up during the day.

Shiro Cosmetics Fatality Finishing Powder
I am quite impressed with this setting powder. It is so finely milled, has a very faint but pleasant scent to it, and really does it's job. It sets your face without making it too matte, but will keep the oilies at bay and just makes your skin feel nice. No bad words about this one, Shiro the Indie cosmetics company did a great job formulating this bad boy and at such a great price too.

Maybelline Color Tattoo by Eyestudio 24hr eyeshadow in Tough as Taupe (35)
This was the first color tattoo I ever got, and it was purchased by my lovely brother for my birthday. I never really wore it much though, as it looked a bit dull on my eyes by itself, and not generally the shade of eyeshadow base I would reach for. But I saw posts online saying that Tough as Taupe worked brilliantly for filling in your brows, and I figured, hey, that makes sense, it is matte and quite ashy... So  I tried it out and good god why did it take me so long. I've never had brows better or more polished. The only thing is, is that it is a tad bit too grey for my colouring and my hair colour too. To combat this, I just top off my brows with Anastasia Beverly Hills Coloured Brow Gel in Graphite and there we have it. Perfect, sculpted brows all day.

Private affair palette first four shades

Lorac Private Affair Palette, shades 1, 2, 3, 4

This is what has really been helping me look quite altogether. Just a quick brush of any one of the extremely buttery shades helps perk up my eyes and make me a tad bit prettier. I usually just go for the third shade in the palette, but any of the first four can work well on my skin tone. I didn't really reach for the last two darker colours, just because they're a bit more "nighttime" than my everyday look, but any combination of the shades in the palette work well together. My favourite being shade 3 all over the lid, shade four in the inner corner and a tad bit of shade 5 in the outer v.

Maybelline Illegal Length  mascara in Blackest Black

Well, isn't Maybelline getting a lot of love this month? I've always been a tad bit curious about this mascara ever since they released it, as I do love fiber mascaras, and so I finally picked it up when Priceline had 50% off all Maybelline products. And really, this is a pretty decent mascara. Separates and the fibers really help to lengthen. It gives a really cute dolly look. There is not a whole heap of volume though and I've noticed that it can wear off a bit during the day, but I can always touch up and there isn't any flaking or that much smudging. 

Mario Badescu Whitening Mask

I'm quite the fan of Mario Badescu products, I think their Acne Facial Cleanser is what really helped turn my skin around. This face mask is said to "brighten up uneven or dull skin" and I really do think it helps, I can see changes straight after using it. It is smooth and creamy, smells really, really nice (almost like grape) and drys on your face like a clay mask. Keep it on for ten minutes and wash it off with warm water, there you have brighter, more even skintone.

So that's it! That's all I have for this month. Really, a month of mostly drugstore and convenience products that have just really help me to pull it all together in a timely manner.