Shiseido Pureness Balancing Softener

Finished this 150mL/5fl oz. Shiseido Pureness Balancing Softener almost two weeks ago so it's time to review. I was in the market for a toner when I picked it up along with The Skincare Hydro-Balancing Softener during Shiseido Skincare Bonus event last fall. I chose them over the few other Shiseido toner options because both are alcohol free.

***Screencap from Shiseido USA.

Revital Trial Kit HK

Revital is a Shiseido whitening product line only available in Asia with slight range and probably ingredients variations between Japan and other Asian countries like Singapore, Hong Kong, etc. I picked up this Revital Trial Kit from Adam Beauty, so I noted the name with HK as it came from Hong Kong.  

The Trial Kit came with 20g Cleansing Foam Type II Moisturizing, 20mL each of the Whitening Lotion EX Type II Moisturizing and Whitening Moisturizer EX Type II Moisturizing, 10mL Whitening Serum AA EX, and 7mL Vital-Perfection Science Cream AAA. I'm not sure what the double-A and the triple-A's stand for, since these aren't exactly batteries. At least I hope not ^.^'

Lancome Desert Rose Subtle Shimmering Blush

This Lancome Desert Rose Subtle Shimmering Blush is one of those forgotten items I've had for a while but were packed away while I moved around. I finally got to it now and am enjoying it!

After the humongous La Roseraie Illuminating Smooth Powder compact, I was relieved to find this Desert Rose blush comes in a regular sized Lancome rectangular blush compact that's much thinner. I'm kind of confused with the name though. It's called the Desert Rose Subtle Shimmering Blush, but the top flap of the box also prints the name "Island Horizon," which makes me think the blush came in different color variations. It didn't, and even if it did it's no longer available anyway. 

Lancome Desert Rose Subtle Shimmering Blush. All pictures taken in natural light without flash.

Lancome La Roseraie Illuminating Smooth Powder

I actually bought this Lancome La Roseraie Illuminating Smooth Powder for my mum, but with her permission took pictures and even a swatch of it ^.^ She always complains of a dull complexion, and she wears blushes and highlighters faithfully everyday so I bought this for her to try out.

Lancome La Roseraie Illuminating Smooth Powder. All pictures taken in natural light without flash.

The Body Shop Buriti Baby Massage Gel

The last of the The Body Shop Buriti Baby Mini Essentials Kit is this 60mL/2fl oz. bottle of Massage Gel.

The Mini Essentials Kit includes 60mL/2fl oz. each of Buriti Baby Body Wash, Baby Shampoo, this Massage Gel, and a 50g/1.76oz. tub of the Body Butter, which I absolutely love!

The Body Shop Buriti Baby Body Butter

After sampling small 50g/1.76oz. tub of the The Body Shop Buriti Baby Body Butter from the Mini Essentials Kit, I was hooked and bought multiple full size backups.

The Mini Essentials Kit came with 60mL/2fl oz. each of the Buriti Baby Body Wash, Baby Shampoo, and the Massage Gel which I will post next.

The New Black Jewel Heist Collection

From the Beauty.com GWP promo that tempted me to get the Stila Seeing Stars Smudge Stick Set and a full size Dr.Ci:Labo Enrich Lift Cleansing & Massage, I got a full size nail polish from The New Black Jewel Heist Collection in the Duochrome Gray color. I have to say, this freebie is probably the first nail color I own in a long time. The last time I painted my nails was, umm, a decade ago?

I'm surprised how little this "full size" bottle is! Isn't it cute and tiny? I'm actually really glad it's mini sized in comparison to the giant nail polish bottles at the drugstores. Small as this bottle is, it'll probably dry out before I can use up even a fifth!

Tarte LipSurgence Part III

Picked up these Tarte LipSurgence Lip Creme when they were on sale back in May. I only saw 3 colors Admired, Loved, and Carefree so I bought all 3.

From left to right: LipSurgence Lip Creme Admired, Loved, and Carefree. All pictures taken in natural light without flash.

Stila Seeing Stars Smudge Stick Waterproof Eye Liner Set

During the Beauty.com promotion, I took the chance to get Stila Seeing Stars Smudge Stick Waterproof Eye Liner Set I've been eyeing since it was released last fall. It was a nice selection of colors, and I wanted to see the difference between these Smudge Sticks and the Kajal Eye Liners. There are 5 full size twist up pencils in this set and I'm happy to have the opportunity to try these out.

I love eye pencils. Having said that I must confess I'm also scared of them. One big reason is that my brows are sparse and my lashes are short and thin, so pencils and gel/cream liners often look very harsh or overly dramatic on me. Even after blending, I still can't smudge a pencil to the soft blurry lines I get with a powder shadow. So when I'm out and about for work or play, I almost exclusively line my upper and lower lash lines with a powder shadow. 

From left to right: Stargazer, Angelfish, Tetra, Moray, and Oscar Fish. All pictures taken in natural light without flash.

Canmake Cheek & Cheek Part IV

Bought this Canmake Cheek & Cheek in color 08 Love Trap Flower late last year when it came out. Happy to report this latest addition to the Cheek & Cheek line is going back to the original contrasting color scheme that made its first four releases so popular. I much prefer the contrast of colors over the similar looking 05 Peach Petal and 06 Antique Rose with two tones that are too close to make much difference once blended.

Canmake Cheek & Cheek 08 Love Trap Flower. All pictures taken in natural light without flash.