Forever 21 haul 09/16/13

1.Large Loop V-Neck Sweater CAD 27.80

2.Large Loop V-Neck Sweater Sea Green CAD 27.80

3. Open Knit Sweater 

FOTD: 09/15/13

Today's foundation routine is with Olay complete sensitive skin spf30, Rimmel Wake Me up Foundation and Guerlain Parure white powder foundation.

The face looked almost flawless with these three products. The make up made skin a beautiful healthy subtle glow. I like this finish.

The staying power was around 6 hours. Makeup on the face did not transfer, however the foundation on the nose spreads a little after 6 hours.

I think the beautiful healthy glow comes from Rimmel Wake Me Up Foundation and because Guerlain Parure White Powder is very light weight and finely milled, it shows well the beauty of Rimmel Wake Me Up Foundation.

FOTD : 09/14/13

Today's base makeup routine is Olay complete sensitive skin spf 30 + Cle de Peau primer  and Guerlain pearly white compact in 032.

The combination makes the make up lasts long, which stays more than 7 hours. The base makeup does not transfer at all.

The finish of the makeup is soft matte. The makeup looked a little bit heavy on the skin. I did not feel heavy but it just looked like I put lots of foundation on it. I guess it's because CdP primer has a thicker texture than other foundations. As a primer it's quite thick. It can be hard to blend if my face is too dry.

Overall good foundation routine without foundation. I got flawless skin and long staying power with primer and compact powder. However the finish is not my favorite, I wish it does not look heavy on my skin.

FOTD (2): Revlon Colorstay for Normal to Dry vs Revlon Age-Defying with botafirm

   V.S.

 





They say Revlon has reformulated its Color stay liquid foundation. I am not sure if they do it here in Canada.  I have purchased a new colorstay recently,  and I feel it's still with the same good coverage and staying power. However there's no spf 15 for normal to dry skin type--no spf for combination to oily either.

To be honest, after today's (it's around 19 degree here) testing, I do not feel very big difference between Color Stay and Age Defying with Botafirm. Of course there are some difference between the two, but in general they are good foundations.

The colorstay foundation contains 30 ml while Age Defying has 37 ml;

Both of them have some paint smell, but age defying's smell is much stronger than colorstay, I am not big fan of age defying smell, but I am ok with it since it does not linger;

Colorstay seem to be offering higher coverage than Age Defying with Botafirm. In general both of them offers very high coverage;

Both of them are not difficult to blend with. I apply the foundation little by little with my finger and they seem to blend very well;

Both of them have no pump, this is one thing I dislike. I feel I cannot control how much I want to use easily each time.

Both of them are with nice finish. They are not matte. To me they are between satin and matte finish;

The staying powder of both are fantastic. They stay on my face for more than 14 hours and never transfer. The look is as fresh as I just applied!

Age Defying with Botafirm has spf 20 in it while colorstay has no spf ;

My skin does not feel dry with both foundations;

Colorstay stays very well on my under eye area while Age Defying with Botafirm is a little bit dry. I am surprised with it because age defying is supposed to be working on dryer skin type. But maybe Colorstay for normal to dry skin can moisturize well....Not sure;

Overall, both of them worth the hype on the Internet community. I do like both of them. They can be more pricey than other drugstore foundations, but they do worth that. Revlon makes a lot of foundations better than department store brands. To me drugstore foundations in general are as compatible to department store foundations; however when it comes to powder foundation, maybe department store brands do better.

FOTD (1): face makeup of the day

I don't know why I am obsessed with face makeup. The only makeup product  I would buy over and over is foundation--no matter it's liquid, cream or powder foundation. I have never been tired of trying new foundations.

The article is about the 'face make up' of the day. I always study carefully with the foundation performance each day since  climate or skin condition can change the foundation staying power on the face.

Before starting with my foundation, I apply moisturizer with sunscreen, I apply sunscreen everyday for it's the best anti-ageing product. Today I use Olay complete spf 30 daily moisturizer for sensitive skin. It's a little bit cold and dry in Toronto today but luckily my skin is not super dry, so this moisturizer works quite well for me.

I do not normally use primer before makeup and I do not think I need it. Sunscreen is enough. So I usually skip this step. 

Since I have the mood to test out my foundations on both sides of my face, I apply Revlon color stay on left side of my face and Revlon age-defying (old version) on right side of my face. 

I will have a detailed review comparing these two later. Revlon colorstay normal to dry skin seems to offer better coverage than Revlon age-defying. Both of them are above medium coverage. But colorstay is more full coverage in my opinion. They both stay more than 14 hours!! They never transfer! I wore them at 9:00 in the morning and I haven't remove my makeup yet now as I am typing (it's around 11:28 now) and the makeup is still  fresh as if I just applied this morning. Both of them have super good staying power. 

 

Then I use Gurlain  powder foundation as my setting powder. I had a review on it before. I apply very little of it. 

I use Revlon nearly naked powder in light to do a nature contour since it's darker than my skin tone.

I highlight with physicians formula happy booster powder translucent. 

Last but not least, I use CdP cheek color duo as my blush. The blush does not look attractive on the pan, but once you apply this blush on, you get the most natural, healthy and beautiful cheek as if you just finished workout. 

This look is for a very natural everyday look.

Review: Yves Rocher Pure Light Foundation

 

When I saw it in the store first time, this foundation did not attract my attention. One reason is that it's housed in a very light plastic bottle. I prefer foundation to be packed in a glass jar since I feel it can preserve better the ingredients in the foundation. The other reason is because I did not believe this foundation can offer any coverage from its name. I prefer foundation to offer some coverage. To be a foundation cannot be called foundation if it offers coverage less than tinted moisturizers. Nowadays more and more tinted moisturizers and sunscreens offer light coverage which work better than some light foundations.

For some reason I ordered this foundation online one day. I read YR claimed this foundation gives a luminous and second skin effect. As a person with dryer skin, I always wish foundation can give me some luminous and glow finish instead of dull matte look. Therefore I decided to give it a try.

The foundation really gives a beautiful luminous finish on the skin. I did not detect any sparkles in the foundation. It is moisturizing on the skin and it looks moisturizing on the face. Your skin looks full of hydration and very healthy.

The coverage is actually quite good as a light foundation, it's between light to medium. But you do not see any powder traces on your skin. Your skin looks better and healthier. I agree with what it claims, it has a second skin effect.

The foundation comes with a pump and the bottle is very light which makes it very travel friendly. Though I prefer glass jars instead of plastic jars. For those people who prefer to bring foundation everywhere for touch ups, it can be your best choice.

YR light luminous foundation gives skin a hydrating feel (see above swatch). 

Yves Rocher Pure light foundation ingredient lists:

Review: Rimmel Wake me Up Foundation

 

Rimmel makes very good foundations with affordable prices. This foundation is around $11 dollars. There are very few foundations retail below $15 dollars in Canada.

Rimmel's Wake me Up foundation claims to have anti-fatigue effect and radiant glow.

If you look at the above swatch, you may see some tiny shimmers there. These small particles does not make your face shine like disco ball. Because it's so subtle, you cannot detect them at all once you apply the foundation on your face. It gives a very healthy glow on the skin that everybody would enjoy. 

The texture is not as runny as revlon nearly naked. I personally dislike runny foundation because it makes everything messy. The foundation feels like light serum which is very comfortable on your skin. It's very easy to blend with your fingers.

The foundation comes with a pump so that you can control the amount of foundation easily each time.

The staying power is good. It stays around 6 hours on the skin. On my normal to dry skin, it does not transfer. 

One downside of this foundation is that the color selection is quite limited. I am around NC 20 and I wear the lightest shade. All Rimmel foundation seem to be having this problem with shade selection, otherwise I think Rimmel's foundation quality is one of the best in drugstore. 

Overall, this is a good quality foundation with limited shade selection. It gives skin very beautiful glow but not greasy. It comes with a pump and the packaging makes this foundation to look more expensive than it is. 

The ingredients list.