First off, let me begin by saying that having a cat is great for relieving stress. They’re adorable, they’re loving (yes, they are! Mine is, anyway), and cheers you up. Mine makes me laugh nonstop when I tried to give her ear drops:

“Meow, I shall.”

She spent 10 whole minutes looking forlorn and kesian, alternating between meowing pitifully and giving us disgusted looks. Bwahahahah… She even knew we were taking her pictures, so she kept turning her back on us and walking away.

Sorry, Zoe. You just look so cute! *LOL* :D

Anyway… *coughcough* Back to topic. I got some new mails this week, and among them is my other order from Everyday Minerals.

This time I bought one from Olive Fair family. Haven’t gone around trying it yet, but I’m testing out the Silk Dust. Silk Dust is a type of finishing powder that claims to absorb oil, and gives an overall more polished look. In the jar, it looks white but upon application, there’s no white cast to be seen. So don’t worry about it. I think it works quite well. This, plus my Shiseido Ultimate Sun Protection Lotion SPF50 works together to mattify my skin. And it’s a combo that works wonders.

Here’s another big purchase I had last month. Urban Decay Primer Potion. On the box it says, “There’s a genie in this bottle and she fulfills three wishes: eyeshadow that lasts, color that stays vibrant all day, and absolutely no creasing. A wave of the wand applies this nude-colored miracle cream to lids. Then brush on your favorite eye color and watch it fail to disappear… like magic!”

Does it deliver on its promise?

Hell, yes!

I don’t know about the more vibrant part, but I did see some people doing reviews online where they swiped some eyeshadow on their hand. The one without is more washed out, the one with is more vibrant. I don’t know. Mine are mostly light colors anyway. I think they showed up a little bit better. But the most important thing is the staying power. It can carry me from the time I applied it to when I’m ready to take it all off.

Very nice. ;)

And here’s another package that arrived today. I promised Irene I would show her the makeup brush I bought off Ebay. Here’s the link to the actual product I bought.

The quality is pretty great - I told Irene I don’t believe in branded brushes, because for the most part we’re actually paying for the name. Initially I was looking for eye liner brush, so I looked into Mac Eye Liner. On the main website it reads that it’s made from synthetic fiber. Synthetic fiber will eventually get tough and hard after some time. When I looked into Ebay, most Hong Kong sellers are selling brushes that claimed to be from the same manufacturers as branded goods… just what you’re buying is nameless.

I must mention that you mustn’t expect branded goods quality. Part of the reason the price is so high for a set of brushes is probably because of 1)the name 2)the quality control. They’ll discard any brushes that look crooked, or the hairs come off or something. There’s one brush in my collection here (the eyeliner brush, incidentally) that looks a bit crooked. It doesn’t affect the performance of the brush, it’s just slightly crooked so I have to get used to it.

The blusher brushes are quite soft. Not as soft as my Kabuki brush, but then I never expected it to. :) There are lots of information on the types of hairs used in makeup brushes, just google and you’ll find them.

And now… a Sunblock shootout!

I’m 26 and only started using sunblock. =.=” But, better late than never, right?

OK, I admit the main reason I bought sunblock is to mattify my face. Sounds oxymoron? Not quite.

There are 3 products I’m looking at here now that are pretty good at controlling oil/shine on face.

• Sofina Perfect UV Lucent Sunscreen SPF50+ PA+++
• Shiseido Ultimate Sun Protection Lotion SPF50 PA+++ For Face and Body
• Biore UV Perfect Face Milk SPF50 PA+++

And… I have two of them here.

On the left, is the drugstore cheapie Biore Perfect Face Milk (RM18 at Guardian, RM20+ at Watson’s). On the right, Shiseido Ultimate Sun Protection Lotion (RM155). One low end, one high end.

How do they stack up?

Biore Perfect Face Milk
- Cheap
- Non Oily/Non Greasy
- Pretty good at mattifying face. My face remained oil free until evening, where a light sheen started to show through. So it’s not perfect.
- Doesn’t feel like wearing anything on.
- Starts off a little oily, then dries to a powder finish.

Shiseido Ultimate Sun Protection Lotion
- Expensive.
- Non Oily/Non Greasy
- Excellent at mattifying face! I went out the whole day and my face remained oil free until night time. Lasting power surpasses that of Biore’s.
- Does not apply greasy. Very light and sets into a matte finish.
- Doesn’t feel like wearing anything on.
- Requires a separate purchase of Shiseido Ultimate Cleansing Oil to remove it, which is an additional cost. RM103 for 150ml.

According to the Shiseido consultant, she says that any sunscreen with SPF30 and above requires cleansing oil to remove it properly. Is this true? I did try to google about it, but very few results turned up. The ones I did find, seemed to confirm this statement, but some people don’t give a damn and uses makeup remover. Thoughts?

The winner: I hate to say it, but… I pick Shiseido. The oil control is a huuuuuge bonus for me. But I’ll revert back to Biore on my frugal months.

Well, that’s it! Hope you enjoy this post.

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