A Hint of Rouge

Although I have quite a number of makeup brushes, I realized that I lack brushes for precise application of eyeshadow. Thus, I bought these two beauties: ELF Contour Brush and Eyeshadow "C" Brush and they are a real steal -- got them for php249.50 each at Watsons! 

Like all other brushes in their studio line, these are made of synthetic taklon brushes. The bristles are extremely soft just like on their Powder Brush and these can be used on both wet and dry products. The brush is very dense, so you can just imagine that it can pack a lot of eyeshadow. I haven't washed these so I have yet to try them and I just can't wait!

I was looking for a good pressed powder to set my liquid foundation -- Revlon Age Defying Liquid Froundation (Still to be reviewed). I found this while window shopping a few days ago and I decided to try it. The shade that seemed to match my skin is Beige so I took that one.

I first tried it after wearing my foundie and it gave a matte look to my oily/combination skin. However, the matte-ness lasted only for about 3-4 hours, afterwhich, I had to reapply. It also gives light to medium coverage and is quite buildable but not cakey, which is good. However, I noticed that the powder looked ashy on my skin but I did get compliments from my coworkers about how great my skin looked so I may be wrong with my previous observation. This powder is also good on its own and still build-able and not cakey. It still gives a matte finish but needs to be reapplied after a few hours.

Overall, this powder is good for its price -- very cheap and does its job well.

This is a follow up of my previous post where I bought an E.L.F. Studio Powder Brush -- which by the way, I am loving to death! Seriously, I 've never been in love with any of my makeup brushes until now and although my other brushes are going to be jealous with the new E.L.F. brush but I just can't help it. Favoritism has begun.

So what's not to love about this brush? It is extremely soft and goes on smoothly on my skin. It doesn't irritate or do anything like that. It smells nice too or maybe that's just from my foundation...?? Anyway, I've tried using it with both powder and liquid foundation and it works wonderfully! Really amazed with this brush and it's very cheap too! 

And yes, I am quite obsessed with collecting E.L.F. Studio makeup brushes now and that is where I am having trouble with. You see, there are limited shops that sell E.L.F. and these shops have even more limited stocks of E.L.F. products. *sigh* At least somehow, something's stopping me from splurging my meager salary on E.L.F. But then again, if there's a will, there's always a way! So until then, I'm off to do some more E.L.F. hunting.

So yesterday I was looking for a powder brush with a flat top at the mall. Naturally, I went first to Watsons to see if Marrionaud has them but I remembered quite clearly they didn't have one but it wouldn't hurt to look again, would it? Expectedly, I didn't find what I was looking for so I went to the pricier stores like Rustans and Beauty Bar as I was bordering on desperate looking for a flat top powder brush. 

What I found in Beauty Bar was a small flat top brush by Young Blood and do you know how much it cost?? Two-thousand-freakin-pesos for a small freaking brush! What the he----! Ok, I can't continue that train of thought as it was a Sunday and it's a no cursing day for me. As much as I wanted it, I had to put it back because it was too much for a single makeup brush. I was desperate but not too desperate.

With a heavy heart, I headed to Metro, my last stop, to see if E.L.F. Studio has any new brushes on sale. I remember I bought their Foundation brush years ago and it was so disappointing that the only good thing I use it for is cleaning my Braun Silk Epil epilator. Anyhow, I browsed through the display and instantly singled out a big flat top brush in it's studio line! What a great find! I have read that the E.L.F. Studio line has waaaaaaaay better quality than their regular makeup products including brushes. The bristles are made of taklon and their very soft and very dense, plus comparing it to the Young Blood small powder brush that cost php2,000.00 this big php250 brush is a steal! I went home happy.

I washed my new E.L.F. Studio Powder Brush last night and I'm still waiting for it to dry completely. I can't wait to use it later before heading to work! 

I apologize for the prolonged absence. I was quite busy the past few weeks as I had to work late on occasions, I also had a number of projects to finish and not to mention a pool party and a weekend trip combined. It was so exhausting but fun, nevertheless. 

So anyway, let's get on to business. I have here Avalon Organics CoQ10 Wrinkle Defense Serum. According to the bottle, it is a concentrated anti-aging treatment and potent antioxidant protection. I got this from a health shop that carries tons of U.S. organic food, supplements and skin care products. 

For those of you who haven't heard of CoQ10 before it is vitamin-like substance and has been observed to possess anti aging properties. It is short of Co-Enzyme Q10. Because of this, it has become a popular supplement especially when you hit the 40's and also a main ingredient in anti aging serums and creams.

I've been using this for about five months and I think that's enough time to be to see effects of the product on my skin. I bought this because I started noticing horrible lines on my forehead last May and I'm only 25 years old. I panicked! I searched through the net on a good serum that would make the lines less noticeable and hopefully erase it altogether (it's a long shot but it doesn't hurt to hope.)

I massaged a tiny bit of the product on my forehead, near the eyes, between the brows and on my laugh lines. After months of use, I have noticed that the lines on my face are less pronounced than before and my skin is softer and smoother too. 

I love this new serum that I found. It is not cheap but a tiny squirt can cover your entire face and that means that this small bottle can go a long long way. Not bad really. I'm sure to get another one when this runs out.