My skin got dry like every winter and though I have more moisturising foundations that really suit me at the moment, this one looks best on the skin. I must sound like a broken record by now saying the exactly the same thing when it comes to this foundation, but it's the most natural looking formula and it never looks obviously that you're wearing something. Coverage is only light-medium so concealer is needed for more prominent imperfections, but I really don't care. It's a foundation that doesn't emphasise uneven texture, regardless of the condition of the skin for example dry patches, big pores or lines. It never makes the skin look bad, it just evens it out and creates a healthy looking finish.
I can say pretty much the same thing here as for HM foundation - again it's a formula that looks very natural on the skin, it's never heavy or cakey. Coverage isn't outstanding, but I was never one for a super high coverage obvious make up look and this does a good enough job under the eyes or hiding some extra redness. Too bad that after all this time Bourjois still hasn't expanded the shade range because the lightest one is a bit too dark for me.
In my New in post I wasn't terribly kind to this, but I've since identified the problem why it didn't work for me and it actually became my favourite highlighter. I need to make sure I'm wearing a moisturising foundation for it to work for me (due to dry skin at the moment) and I apply it with fingers because a brush doesn't pick it up. It has an unique type of formula that's a mix between a powder and a cream, but it's closer to a powder. The glow from this is amazingly beautiful. It's a light champagne shade with very fine shimmer, so it looks very close to natural radiance and it's very intense, so the glow you get is strong. However, there are some minuses and the biggest one is that mine fell out of the pan and when I tried to pick it up, it broke apart into so many pieces, so I spent quite some time getting it back and now it looks battered.
I feature this in my favourites every now and then because it so deserves the attention. It's still my favourite mascara and it makes such a difference compared to all regular mascaras I'm usually testing. The main difference is that it holds up my lashes, which regular formulas can't. It also creates a lot of volume and length, plus since the formula is more on the dry side, it's never messy nor does it clump my lashes together. It's waterproof so I don't use it every day because it's too harsh on the lashes to remove such a heavy duty formula every day, but I always have one in stock and use it when I want to look extra nice.
L.O.V. EYEttraction Magnetic Loose Eyeshadow
N.510 METALfusion
This was such a pleasant surprise. I have been regularly checking these out when we still had a stand here, but I never bought any because L.O.V. isn't the cheapest brand. I like this way more than those Colourpop Super Shock/Essence Melted Chrome/Catrice Metal Sensation type of formulas. It's a drier, but similar version to those and I just find it sticks better to the lids, so I get an intense metallic coat without having to build it up much. I've always been a sucker for very pigmented formulas that don't take ages to layer for a good level of intensity. It's also got much finer shimmer than those more creamy formulas, so it's more every day appropriate. METALfusion is a very classic taupe shade and a type of colour I wear a lot on a daily basis, so I'm really happy with this and I regret missing them when we still had them in our drugstores.
MAX FACTOR Colour Elixir Lip Gloss
25 Enchanting Coral
This was love at first try, but that pretty much happens with all Max Factor glosses to me. They just make the best, most cushiony comfortable formulas ever. It's very similar to Honey Lacquer, just less thick because it's a more sheer finish and the shade I have is a wearable pinky-peachy colour that I've been wearing a lot since I got it.
This is one of my favourite shades ever, Essence just nailed that medium mauve-rosy colour that isn't too brown or too cool - it's just perfect. And the formula is not conventionally crappy Essence lip stuff, as it lasts pretty decently on the lips. It's not like more expensive lip colours, but it's much improved from regular Essence lipsticks. It also dries perfectly matte without feeling drying on the lips. This definitely won me over.
This is an old favourite like that Essence mascara above, which means I've been using it all the time for years now, but I don't mention it often here because I'd be repeating myself way too much. It's the best shampoo ever for my super dry hair. It doesn't leave that nasty squeaky clean feeling where I'm just hoping my hair mask will fix the dryness situation I caused by stripping the hair too much, instead it feels like I already use some conditioner, so my hair feels silky when I'm rinsing this off and it's not tangled. It's a drugstore godsend for very dry, coarse hair that needs a lot of care - but I must warn you that I've had some people say that it's too much for them, so unless your hair is very dry, this might not be for you.
L'OREAL PROFESIONNEL Série Expert Absolut Repair Lipidium
Just like the shampoo this is my standard hair mask that as you can see I have a massive pot of and it usually lasts me about a year (I use some other stuff too, but mostly this). It's the cheapest salon quality hair mask per millilitre and one of the rare ones that's enough for my super dry hair. It's a very thick formula which is an instant sign it's going to work for me because I need a lot of nourishment and nothing weighs down my hair. It's also got some proteins so it's good for hair that's prone to damage.
CREATEURS DE MONOI Oil
I've been doing some colour experiments in the last two months and I'm one of those people who obsessively prepares before any changes, so to keep my hair really nourished before and after colouring, I've been applying this oil every day. My hair can handle and actually needs a lot, so I can apply such regular, non-silicone oils without my hair turning into a greasy mess and this has that excellent consistency where it's not too thick (like regular macadamia oil which is much heavier) and my hair completely absorbs it. It contains a combination of jojoba and coconut oil, both fantastic for hair care. This oil also smells great and strong, something I always like, but it's not a coconut type of scent, it's very floral.
UPDATES
SCHWARZKOPF Blondme Premium Developer 6% and Bond Enforcing Premium Lightener 9+
& L'OREAL Récital Préférence 8.1 Copenhague
I mentioned above I've been doing colour experiments, which is the biggest change I've made in 10 years (I already had highlights when I was very young and I was a redhead for a few years). I've done it all myself because I want to, I want to learn how to do it, know how my hair deals with bleach and I don't want to go to the hairdressers for various reasons (I even cut my own hair). I don't care if I screw up badly. Schwarzkopf Color Expert got me to an expected orange level 6-7 stage, so after a lot of research I picked Schwarzkopf Blondme line because it has an added bond builder (something like Olaplex that prevents significant damage) and because I read many reviews saying it got even those with very dark hair to platinum blonde in one try. I used it on a strand of hair I cut off before using it on my hair and left it on for the longest recommended time 45 minutes. Sadly it only got my hair to a golden stage (level 8) with one session, which I suspected might happen. I re-dyed that strand again and left it on for over 45 minutes and it got to a medium yellow shade, which is level 9. It's my fault because I only took a 6% developer, since it was the only thing on Amazon. Regardless I dyed my hair with 6% developer and hoped for the best. I used coconut oil overnight before bleaching (I did a kind of a balayage, but more extensive) and I have to praise these two Blondme products because I got no visible damage. Also this barely has a bleach scent and it got on my skin a lot, but I got zero irritations. Two thumbs up for the quality. Btw I have all Subrina's developers at home, so even the strongest 12% (40 vol.) which I again tried on a strand, but the texture is liquid compared to the creamy Schwarzkopf and it's a strange mix, though it did work getting to a pale shade of yellow in one go. I think I'll order a stronger Blondme developer for next time instead of doing it twice, but not anytime soon. For now I'll do oil treatments and Olaplex for a while before coloring again because I really want to minimise damage.
Since my hair was as expected orange-yellow as lightening dark hair is a long process and there are no toners for hair that isn't ultra-bleached in our drugstores, I used L'Oreal Preference 8.1. It did an ok job, it definitely cooled the lightest parts, but some more reddish bits obviously weren't covered, regardless my hair colour right now is pretty nice. Too warm for my taste, but so far everyone's like it. Preference, though, did not impress me at all. This is the strongest smelling colour I've tried. I'm really not sensitive to smells, but this knocked me down and made my eyes water, so it was this big minus from the start. Number two is that the colour part is a liquid and not a cream. While it doesn't drip, it's got a consistency similar to an egg when you mix it with the developer and the colour slides of the brush when I tried to pick it up (I always use a pot and a brush instead of these applicator bottles because it's a lot more precise). One box also felt like it had less product that Excellence, but I managed to spread it enough using a comb and fingers. It didn't make my hair feel as nice as Excellence and the hair conditioner isn't better, so I'm sticking to the cheaper Excellence which is such a brilliant colour.
Since my hair was as expected orange-yellow as lightening dark hair is a long process and there are no toners for hair that isn't ultra-bleached in our drugstores, I used L'Oreal Preference 8.1. It did an ok job, it definitely cooled the lightest parts, but some more reddish bits obviously weren't covered, regardless my hair colour right now is pretty nice. Too warm for my taste, but so far everyone's like it. Preference, though, did not impress me at all. This is the strongest smelling colour I've tried. I'm really not sensitive to smells, but this knocked me down and made my eyes water, so it was this big minus from the start. Number two is that the colour part is a liquid and not a cream. While it doesn't drip, it's got a consistency similar to an egg when you mix it with the developer and the colour slides of the brush when I tried to pick it up (I always use a pot and a brush instead of these applicator bottles because it's a lot more precise). One box also felt like it had less product that Excellence, but I managed to spread it enough using a comb and fingers. It didn't make my hair feel as nice as Excellence and the hair conditioner isn't better, so I'm sticking to the cheaper Excellence which is such a brilliant colour.
OLAPLEX n.3
This is a very hyped up product, but I never considered really getting it until I bleached my hair and while exploring how to go about the bleaching process everyone said that Olaplex is a must. It fixes the broken bonds that happen during bleaching or colouring as well as at heat styling. I used to have Joico K-Pack Reconstructor for the job, but this I believe goes one a step further, at least so its claimed. I didn't really believe in those before/after pictures nor do I believe this fixes any significant damage that's already happened, but I do think it maybe fixes minor damage that might get worse and more importantly protects the hair from further damage. I fully expected that this tiny bottle with only a 100 ml was going to last me two uses at most still I decided to get it anyway, but surprisingly I only used about a 1/5 of the bottle and I really went to town with it. I've used it three times by now and I have a bit under a half left. The formula is so easy to spread and it's no problem coating all the hair with minimal amount of product. I leave it on for a couple of hours and wear a shower cap, so it doesn't dry out (a minimum of 10 minutes is recommended). This isn't a conditioner and you need to follow up with shampoo and a mask/conditioner after, so I expected that like at Joico K-Pack Reconstructor I won't even notice I used anything, but this leaves my hair with that silky feeling as I'm rinsing it off. I use my usual L'Oréal Extraordinary Oil shampoo and L'Oréal Professionnel Absolut Repair Lipidum mask that contains Phyto-keratin (as well as lipids and ceramides) that strengthen the hair, plus I also use Redken Anti-Snap for additional protein treatment. In terms of visible results - the main thing is that my hair hasn't changed even after all of this colouring. It isn't more damaged or more dry, it's not brittle or weak, so this must be doing its job. I will continue using it and if you lighten, bleach or colour your hair regularly it's not a bad idea to invest in one of these type of products, otherwise I don't see the point in getting this. Olaplex is the most famous one, but there are a few dupes already.
A change after quite a while in my skin care routine. My Tony Moly Panda cream ran out and I didn't order anything to replace it yet, so I riffled though my stash and found a pot of Createurs de Monoi moisturiser. I've used up a pot of this a couple of years back and I liked it, but it's just a moisturiser it doesn't have any particularly impressive ingredients and I want more from a cream. However, since it's thicker than Panda, it really suits my dry skin at the moment, so I'm enjoying it. The smell is nice too, which is also a big plus for me.
I have to mention this because it's been on my nails pretty much all the time since I got it in December or end of November. I love pale pastel blue shades and this one is perfect.
WISHLIST
MAYBELLINE Lash Sensational or BEYU Beauty Queen Volume mascara - best regular mascaras I know and I want at least one back in my stash. // SCHWARZKOPF Blondme Blonde Toning in Steel Blue - it neutralises orange-golden tones on lightened hair. Their Ice shade is meant for paler yellow tones. // AVON Reversalist Infinite Effects Night Treatment Cream - disappointed by The Ordinary's retinoids, I'd like to try this instead. Adjusting Beauty has a full review here. // BATH & BODY WORKS Fine Fragrance Mist in Almond Blossom and Bright Autumn Blooms (LE) - of course I want more of these. Almond Blossom is described as a warm & cozy mix of sweet almond oil blended with vanilla orchid & cashmere musk, and BAB as a fall bouquet of warm marigold petals, sandalwood, sparkling bergamot & cedar leaf. // BEAUTY OF JOSEON Dynasty Cream - I really just need to order this. I loved the sample and I want a full size for my regular moisturiser.
Have a great day!
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