Pop Beauty Mini Ribbon Gloss

Other than the Ribbon Gloss, it's safe to say I'm not really into Pop Beauty. Have nothing against the brand, just that I don't really find any of its items interesting. Yes, even the Neon Lids, not even the kits.

So why the Ribbon Gloss? Well, I actually don't like the full size version because it has 5 color stripes, some with fussy shimmers I don't really want to bother with. This mini one in the color combination Poppy Red though, has three bright and beautifully translucent red, orange, and bubblegum pink! Needless to say, I had to have it :D And for only $10, it wasn't so bad.



Anyhoo, the gloss was very, very thin. It felt like a light but moisturizing and non-waxy lip balm, thanks to the jojoba oil in the ingredients. Too bad it didn't last as long as I was hoping it would. I even liked the smell too! It was supposed to be vanilla but I think it smelled more like coconut. All that aside, the biggest brownie point for me with this gloss was its surprise pigment punch. It was like a bright sheer stain, absolutely not opaque or cakey. Especially that red color, try patting it on top of good old chapstick! The pink is lovely by itself, not tweeny at all, and the orange is very good lightening up my darker lipsticks and glosses. I guess I like this gloss a lot more than expected to. Now, if they would just come up with a longer lasting formula, I would definitely buy the full size version!

Catena Eight Cups of Water Mask

Another blah Catena sheet mask, the Eight Cups of Water Mask. And yes, this one reeked of cKone too, albeit with more of a citrus note.



As its namesake entails, this sheet mask is supposed to be hydrating. To be honest though, I couldn't tell the difference between this sheet mask and the other Catena Collagen Protein Wrinkle Removing & Moisturizing Mask! They both burned a little upon application, probably because of the alcohol content, and they were both moisturizing too, although nothing impressive or substantial. So yeah, I probably won't buy these again as I'd rather save my money for the Hadabisei Moisturizing Masks with Collagen.

The Body Shop Fall 2008 Collection

UPDATE 09/28/03: Sadly, The Body Shop Fall 2008 Collection is rather disappointing. I was so looking forward to it I went straight to the mall the day it was supposedly released, September 18. But painfully disappointed I was, and it took me this long to get off my ass to update this post.

So where do I begin? The 2 cheek colors were cheap looking, the eye shadows were muddy and chalky, and the Shimmer Cubes #15 - my collectible item - have colors that were just plain wrong! In the excitement of my original post below, I wondered if they got the color names all messed up because it didn't reflect at all the colors in the pictures. Well, the color names were correct alright, and it was the colors in the pictures that were messed up. Unlike the usual Shimmer Cubes super-metallics, #15 has a dark charcoal, basically black, that's NOT a metallic (at least not to me!), an ugly pasty white with a lilac pearly sheen, and 2 blues!!! I do have other Shimmer Cubes combos with - mind you - 1 blue in them, but I'm okay with that because they have other wearable colors, unlike this black, white, and 2 blues combo! Let's see, what can I do with black? Ahh, I line my eyes with it, smudge it for a smoky look, and if I ever go all out, I'll put on rocker eyes, goth eyes, racoon eyes, panda eyes, whatever. What can I do with white? Umm, highlight? But 2 blues?!? What the hell am I going to do with 2 blues when I can barely deal with one? Grr...yes, I'm hella grumpy now...

---------------------------
...that is Deadly Desire. No, serious. The Body Shop Fall 2008 Collection is called Deadly Desire. Silly name, but that aside I very much look forward to its release on August 29 (I think...)!

Usually, my approach to makeup is just to buy whatever that catches my fancy and I never really follow any brand's seasonal collections. But several items from this collection are definitely on my shopping list. I'm not a huge fan of The Body Shop per say, but I do love their shimmer cubes and I think some of their past limited edition blushes were really pretty (think Shimmer Waves and Blushing Daisies). But this particular Fall 2008 collection is different. It has perfect-for-fall colors that are still wearable colors year round. I think the versatility did it for me :D




***Pictures from A Blogger that Falls in Love with...MAKEUP.

I'm definitely getting:
- The 2 Shu Uemura-esque blushes (even though I'm not that into Shu...), colors Desert Rose and Dune Pink
- The 2 lovely dual-colors eye shadow palettes, colors Khaki Green and Eucalyptus Grey
- Those Shimmer Cubes, colors Silver Crest, Blue Horizon, Deep Down Blue and Ocean Rock Grey. I wonder if I got the color names wrong because they don't really reflect the actual colors of the cubes. But whatever, they are sooooooo mine!

The main reason I'm attracted to these items is because they are very shimmery (The Body Shop stuff are very shimmery in general), and the eye shadows are highly metallic. I don't particularly like the fact that the blushes and eye shadows, Shimmer Cubes included, are baked because baked stuff usually have harder texture and not as soft and silky to the touch. But then again, baked stuff are also intensely shimmery and metallic. I guess can live it that :P

Bonne Bell Rolly Lip Smacker

I was never a fan of Bonne Bell Lip Smackers. The flavors they have are neat and unique, but the stuff itself is mushy and oily and doesn't last at all. I remember slathering these on during middle school and they'd disappear after a few minutes. May be I used to talk a lot or something...Still do... ^.^

BUT, on a whim I bought these Bonne Bell Rolly Lip Smackers after spotting them at my local grocery store :P Did I tell you I have a thing for roller ball stuff? Yes, I do! I got the Strawberry and Cotton Candy combo, and while the other ones looked interesting too I decided I ought to stick to just this one for now.

The glosses go on light and glossy, and no taste, thank god! If I remember correctly, the majority of, if not all, the roller ball lip glosses I've tried in the past were sugary sweet, including these Avon Roller Ball Lip Glosses, and lucky me these Bonne Bell aren't one (er...two) of them. If I wanted candy, I wouldn't have bought lip glosses, sheesh! The bad thing is though, again, these glosses didn't last on me, although I do admit they stayed on my lips longer than expected. I was thinking they'd be like the Lip Smackers in the twist up tubes, but they surpassed my expectations, which weren't much to begin with.


Strawberry is a clear reddish pink, strawberry flavor, of course. Goes on clear with just hint of a red for juicy lips.


Cotton Candy is a very shimmery princess pink. It did not turn frosty on me - phew! - but turned a rather translucent shimmery gloss. It was pretty.

Anyways, my conclusion is these Bonne Bell Rolly Lip Smackers are neat and fun stuff, but if you want a real lip gloss, save your few bucks for a Lancome Juicy Tube or even better, the Victoria Secret Beauty Rush Soothing Lip Balm - a balm that can double as a gloss on top of lipstick - my all time favorite cannot-live-without lipbalm!

Allie Comfortable Sunscreen EX Perfect SPF50+ PA+++

Wah...it's almost October already! Yikes! Sorry for disappearing for a while there!

Back in June, I promised in this post I was going to give you a full review of the new Allie Comfortable Sunscreen EX Perfect SPF 50+ PA+++. I have never tried the old Allie sunscreen formula, but recently, the brand revamped, reformulated, and repackaged its sunscreens to replace the older ones. The new Allie sunscreen comes in 3 formulas:
1. Allie Comfortable Sunscreen EX Watertouch SPF 50+ PA+++: a daily sunscreen that does not need a separate oil cleanser to remove because it is not waterproof.
2. Allie Comfortable Sunscreen EX Perfect SPF 50+ PA+++: a waterproof sunscreen that needs a separate oil cleanser to remove.
3. Allie Comfortable Sunscreen EX Whitening SPF 50+ PA+++: self explanatory, in addition to being waterproof and needing a separate oil cleanser to remove.

The one is use is the "EX Perfect" version, and after a good 3 months trial, I am happily reporting that all hype with this brand new Allie reinvention is indeed well deserving! I don't know about the other 2 versions, but this Allie EX Perfect sunscreen truly is all it promises to be, and it is the one and only sunscreen for me now, replacing my all time favorite Sofina Perfect UV SPF 50 PA+++ Lucent! Unbelievable, huh?

Allie Comfortable Sunscreen EX Perfect SPF 50+ PA+++ (although they all look pretty much the same, save for the labeling). See the ingredients list translated from Japanese.

Maquillage Glossy Gloss Part II

This review is for Maquillage Glossy Gloss #74. It has 3 layers, a pigmented peach-toned brick red bottommost layer, a peachy beige middle layer, and a sheer top layer with silver shimmers. When mixed, it becomes a pretty translucent peach that brings out my natural lip colors. It has the same slight fruity scent as #72.



Now a bit of a complaint. Because #74 actually has some colors, I had a hard time getting to the more pigmented gloss at the bottom. Well, not that the spatula applicator can't get to the bottommost layer, it can, but by the time I pull the applicator through the stopper at mouth of the tube, most of the pigmented gloss was already lost to the middle and the top layer. No matter how hard I tried, I'd always end up with no more than a tiny bit of color, grrr...



My theory is that the most pigmented is also the most dense, so it has to be on the bottom to prevent the three layers mixing, perhaps because the more dense layer collapses down on top of the less dense layer? Just a guess though, I'm no physicist. I just wish they'd come up with a spatula applicator with more of a grip, may be a fuzzy side instead of both side being smooth?

See my previous Maquillage Glossy Gloss post.

Clinique Superbalm Moisturizing Gloss Part II

I got yet another Clinique Superbalm Moisturizing Gloss GWP, this time in the color Rootbeer.



Rootbeer is a nude color, even though it looks more mauvy in the picture! It's actually great if you like the nude look as it goes on true and yet not opaque. Also, surprise surprise, but there is inconsistency in the texture of these Superbalms as well! This Rootbeer color is not as thick and sticky as the Raspberry color, and it's a bit more moisturizing too with no discernable scent. In fact, now that I think about it, Rootbeer feels identical to my beloved Lancome Juicy Tubes! Wow. I think it like it. Enough to think about putting both the Rootbeer and Raspberry through my gym test :D Will update on that soon.

Also, it seems all the Clinique Superbalms are translucent and none of them have shimmers. But then again I've only seen 6 or 7 out of all the colors available, and so don't quote me :P But if what I think is true, I think I'm going to need more of these, like, right now :D As I've mentioned in my review of Raspberry, if the Lancome Juicy Tubes ever go away, which I really hope they won't, these Superbalms are my Plan B glosses! I didn't expect this at all, but they are moving rather quickly up my favorite ladder. Alright, that's it. I'm going over to Clinique.com :D

See my previous Clinique Superbalm Moisturizing Gloss post.

Catena Collagen Protein Wrinkle Removing & Moisturizing Mask

Do you like cKone? Enough to bathe your face in it? If so, you'll love Catena Collagen Protein Wrinkle Removing & Moisturizing Mask. Otherwise, stay far and away!



I don't know much about the brand Catena as I can't seem to find any information on it except for the fact that it's readily available in Asia, especially Hong Kong and Singapore. If anyone has any idea, please do point me in a direction as I am curious as well.



To be honest, I don't hate cKone. It's beautiful on hubby because he could bring out the citrus notes in it. Just that the idea of spritzing it all over my face isn't exactly...cool, and that's my biggest complaint with this Protein Wrinkle Removing & Moisturizing Mask - it's heavily perfumed, and I don't just mean it's scented, it's perfumed, and with a fragrance identical to cKone. If you're a big fan of cKone and are into the fragrance, soap, lotion, deodorant, the whole nine yards, no doubt this sheet mask will complete your collection. But other than that, ick. Whose idea was it? *Smack!* BAD idea. BAD.

Other than the smelly issue though, it was an okay treatment mask. The sheet mask itself was well cut and I didn't have to fumble with it much to get a fit application. While I can't vouch for the "wrinkle removing" part, the mask was moisturizing and I didn't need extra moisture after the treatment. My skin did not react to essence, which is always a good thing. Overall, it was an average sheet mask, however, I wouldn't repurchase solely because of the whole cKone thing. Too '90s :D