Sleek Blushes Haul

I finally got hold of the most talked about blushes - Sleek! I have been reading so many great reviews about these blushes that i couldn't wait to get my hands on a few. I got mine at Updated Trends for P400.00 a piece. Sleek is a UK drugstore brand makeup, these costs only £3.50 (about P230.00) in UK. The price range of their products are really cheap, P400 for blushes and lippies, P500 for eyeshadow palettes, etc. There are very limited stocks of Sleek products in local online stores so make sure to grab what you like really fast. 

I love the packaging! They come in a really handy, compact matte casing. They don't look drugstore at all. I've swatched them already, and boy, are the colors lovely and very pigmented too! I promise to make separate reviews of each color. They look so pretty I want to dedicate a single post for each blush. 

TOP L-R: Flamingo, Pomegranate
BOTTOM L-R: Life's A Peach, Rosegold

L-R: Rose Gold, Pomegranate, Life's A Peach, Flamingo

Lovely colors right? I want to haul all of the Sleek blushes. 


♥ blushbaby

Review: MAC Pink Nouveau (Satin)

Ahhhh... the infamous MAC Pink Nouveau. This is one of MAC's crazily-popular lipstick shades. A favorite among local & foreign celebrities - Lady Gaga even confessed she was once obsessed with this shade. 

I love pink lipstick. It's a color that can instantly brighten up a face and make you look younger. Being NC35 with warm olive undertones though, not all pink lipstick suits my skin tone. I bought Pink Nouveau knowing there was a 60% chance of the color not looking good on me. But, it was 20% off at La Petite Confiserie and it's so difficult to pass up a MAC item on sale (only P700) so i had to grab it immediately. MAC lipsticks are pricey. They go for P1,000 a tube at MAC stores and P800-P900 on Ebay. My personal makeup philosophy for lipsticks is to spend less. There are a lot of pretty colors that costs much cheaper - like NYX for example. This is why i am such a hoarder for NYX lippies - they're super cheap! To date I only have a very humble collection of 5 MAC lipsticks (Lustering, Cosmo, Chatterbox, Crosswires, & Impassioned). I'd be happy to get a few more this Christmas! tehee... =)

Now back to Lady Gaga, I mean, Pink Nouveau. This is how Pink Nouveau looks like when swatched:

MAC describes this is as bright pink. I would say this is a true barbie blue based pink lipstick with slight purple undertones. On me, the purple undertone is much more obvious. On my fair skinned friend (NC20) though, the purple undertone is barely noticeable. This would appear bright pink on pigmented lips (like mine), and probably more muted on less pigmented lips.  This is a satin finish so it's like matte with a teeny tiny bit of sheen. A bit drying to the lips. Satin is not one of my favorite finishes from MAC as i prefer Lustre, Cremesheen & Amplified Creme.

PROS

- it's MAC! 

- great pigmentation

- staying power is very good 

- a nice, very wearable pink shade 

CONS

- pricey for a lipstick

- this formula tends to be drying on the lips

- tends to highlight the cracks on your lips so make sure to moisturize lips first

- will not suit all skintones

FINAL THOUGHTS

I've worn this thrice already but I am still undecided whether i like the color on me or not. I haven't noticed any weird stares though so the color isn't probably very shocking (like Milani's Rose Hip) or weird looking. My major setback for Pink Nouveau though is that this looks more lilac on me than pink. Purple and me don't go very well.

If you love MAC and pink lipstick, then this is a must have color to keep on your traincase. Otherwise, there are much cheaper alternatives for this color. Try googling MAC Pink Nouveau dupes and you'd get a lot of results.  

This is how Pink Nouveau looks on me. What do you think?

Pink Nouveau is one of those lipsticks that gives you fuller-looking, Angeline Jolie puckers.

Do you have Pink Nouveau? Do you like it or hate it? 

♥ blushbaby

Review: NYX Slim Lip Pencil - Coral, Hot Pink, Nude Pink, Deep Red

Pardon my being MIA for the past weeks. Beginning late October upto the third week of November, I had been terribly busy preparing for our company's participation in  PHILCONSTRUCT 2011 two weeks ago. I was finally able to have a breather from all the stress this week, which explains why i am finally able to blog! Yehey!

About a month ago I had a major NYX haul at NYX Wholesale PH. Their prices are incredible low, so i obviously went crazy online shopping for some lippies, liners, etc. For only P95 a piece, who can resist these NYX lip pencils? These pencils come in over 60 colors and in different finishes - satin, matte, frost, etc. I got 4 colors: Coral, Hot Pink, Nude Pink, and Deep Red. 

L-R: Coral, Hot Pink, Nude Pink, Deep Red

L-R (w/ flash): Coral, Hot Pink, Nude Pink, Deep Red

L-R (w/o flash): Coral, Hot Pink, Nude Pink, Deep Red

I super love these pencils! They're really creamy, glides easily on the lips, color payoff is really good, lasts long, and best of all, they're really cheap - only P95.00! 

Coral is a true coral peachy color. Surprisingly though, this wasn't as creamy as the 3 other colors. The color payoff is great though, and i can wear this as a lip liner, or all over the entire lip. Just top off with a corally or nude lipgloss and it'll look great. As this color and formula is a bit drying, make sure to put on lip balm first. 

Hot Pink is well, a true bright, hot pink shade. This is really creamy, and glides like a dream on my lips. The color payoff is really good so you can wear this alone. 

Nude Pink is a gorgeous light pinky brown shade! This is great to use when you do not have any lipliner to match a certain lipstick shade. It's very versatile. Color payoff is average. This is not as creamy as Hot Pink and Deep Red though. 

Deep Red is a true deep dark red. Great to match with deep red lipsticks. This, or any red lip liner, should be a staple in every girl's kikay kit. To properly pull off red lips, it is a must to use a lip liner. Great color payoff too and creamy so i sometimes wear this alone. 

What the Label Says

Slim, trim but never prim, our lip pencils come in 60 dashing shades—from auburn to orange and traffic-stopping red. The buttery, long-wearing lip liner formula goes on easily and resists bleeding. Available in 60 shades.

Net Wt. 

1 g

Price:

P 95.00

The Good

-  really cheap!!!

- good color payoff
- most of the colors are creamy & glides easily on the lips

The Bad

- quality is not consistent as some are creamy and glides easily on the lips, while some colors are not
- staying power is average

Final Verdict

For only P95.00, these lip pencils are such a steal! 

What NYX Slim Lip Pencils do you have? 

♥ blushbaby

Review: Missha Perfect Cover #27 *New Shade

After 2 months, my Missha Perfect Cover #27 has finally arrived! 

Last July, Missha introduced a new shade in their Perfect Cover line, #27 Honey Beige. To date, Missha Perfect Cover now comes in 5 shades: 

#13 Milky Beige

#21 Light Beige

#23 Natural Beige

#27 Honey Beige

#31 Golden Beige

For the longest time now, I have been using #23 Natural Beige. Read my review here. Although it is a tad too light for my skintone, I still prefer it over #31 because Golden Beige (#31) is just waaay too dark. Missha got it right by introducing a shade between #23 & #31. 

MISSHA PERFECT COVER #27 HONEY BEIGE

Here's a comparison between #23 & #27: 

The major difference in the two is that #27 is yellow toned while #23 has a grey tone to it. For an NC35 (NC40 in the summer) like me, #23 is just way too light. However, as my skin tends to oxidize, #23 just blends with my skintone after about an hour or two. 

#27 on the other hand is about a 90% match with my skin tone. One of the letdowns though is that it's a bit too yellow for my olive skin. By applying just the right amount of bb cream and when blended really well however, the yellow tone almost goes unnoticed. This did not oxidize on my skin so i have no problems with it getting too dark a few hours after use.

Ironically, both #23 and #27 matches my skin well. The only difference being that #27 is slightly yellow/golden toned so it's a better match on me than #23. 

Bare Wrist & With Missha Perfect Cover

Here's my shade guide for the Missha shades: 

#13 Milky Beige (For NC 15-20)

#21 Light Beige (For NC 20-25)

#23 Natural Beige (For NC 25-35)

#27 Honey Beige (For NC 35-40)

#31 Golden Beige (For NC 40-45)

The catch here loves is that the shade #27 is sold only in the US. This is not available in the Philippines and in Korea. I got mine at a pre-order at My Little Shop which explains why i had to wait 2 months. Damage is P1,450.00 for a 50ml tube. It is more expensive than the other shades (only about P900+ for a 50ml tube in ebay and other online shops) because it is sold only in the US. Missha US is more expensive than Missha Korea (where most online shops source their Missha from). Missha in Korea is really cheap.

If you're between NC 35-40, this shade is a must try!

 

♥ blushbaby