The Makeup Box

Bright, Budget Lip Colors for Summer:

The Body Shop Leona Lewis “Deerlicious Fuchsia” Lip Gloss, and Flormar “Pretty” Lipsticks are some of the delicious lip deals that won’t break your bank this season.

All products applied on bare lips without any base or liner!

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«The Body Shop Deerlicious Fuchsia»

Firstly, the Body Shop launched the Leona Lewis collection, which I do think not only has fab packaging, but also has plenty of items that would work great on women of color.

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[Requested] 5 Favorite: Neutral Shadows, Liners, and Mascaras

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Now my favorites do change ALL the time, so I didn’t want to list items that are “current favorites” until they really stand the test of time.

Here are things I’ve used mostly for years, and prefer over alternatives for various reasons.

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Super-quick Update! The cheaper MAC Omega dupe!

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I was browsing through The Body Shop just a couple of hours ago and saw the new display rack with the range of Colour Crush shadows which replaced the old line (I will miss those gorgeous creamy metallics; they had a molten silver to die for…)

The Colour Crush line is slightly larger than the old range (they are now 1.5g, same as a MAC pan) and meant to be usable both wet or dry. But I have to say the shimmer shades in the new line aren’t anything to write home about. The colors are pretty, but there’s very little pigmentation when used dry. The mattes however, are F-A-B.

They are very silky-smooth and incredibly pigmented, so you won’t have to use a lot to get color. I was in the market for some matte neutrals so I immediately pounced on the above 3 once I swatched them, especially since we were just talking about a MAC Omega dupe earlier today.

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Gift Giving Ideas - Part 1: Delicious Scent and Body Products from The Body Shop and L’occitane

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I was shopping around the other day, and looking at all the holiday offerings the many brands were putting out, and it’s not really random that I picked these 2 brands out. I just particularly like what they have on offer right now, whether you’re thinking of gifts for the people around you, OR for yourself.

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1. Low-to-mid range ideas - The Body Shop

I just saw the Body Shop’s Holiday collection products, and we all know they have cute holiday bath products. It’s no different this year, but I feel they’ve spiced it up a little and made things more appealing.

The 3 “Xmas flavors”, if you didn’t know, are:

• Vanilla Bliss - Straight-up vanilla creme. This is not a vanilla extract type of scent so if you want your vanillas VERY natural-smelling, this won’t be it. If you want something more like cupcake frosting or ice-cream, this is it.
• Ginger Sparkle - A lot of people are misled by the gingerbread man on the packaging. This is NOT a gingerbread, baked-goods type of scent. This is ginger with a tiny bit of sweetness thrown in. Zingy, sharp and fresh. If you like that (I do), get this.
• Cranberry Joy - What you see is what you get! Not too sweet, and more the scent of fresh cranberries.

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The little domed lip balms are a nod to EOS, but come in the 3 flavors listed above.  At $6 each, they’re a good stocking stuffer for anyone who’s obsessed with delicious lip balms.

Other body products range from around $6-12 (US) so those are a good options as well.

For some extra glamour, my favorite product is the Sparkler in Dazzling Copper. There’s also a soft gold shade, but that shade’s really not all that interesting to me. THIS, on the other hand, gives a beautiful sprinkling of bronze dust that is going to be so pretty on your skin AND your hair. (Yes, hair!)

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2. Mid-to-High range ideas - L’occitane

L’occitane Delices des Fleurs Rose & Violette Eau de Toilette (check in stores for availability)

This was a limited edition scent released for the 2011 Holidays and I’m very glad they brought it back this year, but it’s not available everywhere so you’ll need to check with your local store.

This is a soft gourmand-floral scent that mimics the delicious smells of candied violets and roses on a bed of powdery vanilla. It doesn’t matter if you’ve never tried them (I haven’t!) because this scent is yummy, but still delicate and girly. 

US$42 for the 75ml EDT. There was a small solid perfume last year ($10) and a matching cream, but I haven’t seen those this year.

If you’re not able to locate Delice des Fleurs, another luxurious scent is Rose 4 Reines, which was inspired by the 4 beautiful daughters of a French Count who each had a namesake rose, and each went on to marry a king. This is a heady mix of 4 of the most popular roses used in fragrances; Bulgarian, Morrocan, Turkish, and Grasse.

It also comes in an “Intense” version, and both lines have prices ranging from $20-45 in various sizes.

Best of Shea Collection ($40) - for the person who uses and abuses his/her hands a lot. L’occitane’s Shea range put them on the map. Here’s a little pack that will last for months and months, and it also comes with a cute colorful tote bag!

Black Friday All-Time Favorites ($106) - I’d say only get this “full-body experience pack” for the die-hard L’occitane fan. Also a better gift for someone who uses anti-aging products because of the Immortelle products included. 

For the host of a party, (or if you’re hosting a cozy gathering yourself) try a bottle of Candied Fruits home spray ($20) - This is delicious and sweet. 

For the men, try a modern classic EDT like Eau des Bavx ($50) - I believe it’s pronounced Oh-day-Bow (not You-des-Bavex, thank you). This is a rather mysterious-smelling scent centered around cypress and incense. Masculine but I know a lot of women actually like this themselves, so if you know someone who likes to wear men’s fragrances, this might be an option as well!

Things I’m Loving Right Now (Makeup, Tools, Skincare, Fragrance!)

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Let’s get right to it!

1. Coastal Scents Mica in Paradise Sunset

This deep burnished copper-fire pigment is freaky-beautiful. Just make sure you use a good base because it will flake and fade like any loose powder shadow.

Get it while they’re running clearance on coastalscents.com!

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2. MAC Shadow in Crystal

I’ve owned this shadow for over a year now and only recently started to use it more. I love that subtle duo-chrome glow as it shifts between a soft ash and a pale lavender. Unique without being too loud!

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3. Shu Uemura Brow Pencil in Hard Formula 9 Seal Brown

It took me awhile to get down to trying these, despite their cult status. Who wants to pay so much for a pencil that you need to bring back to the counter to sharpen unless they have a Shu Uemura counter downstairs?

But one I realised this gives the most NATURAL-looking brows, and just how long the pencil lasts (if you use it normally just to define and fill in your brows, that professionally-shaved sword-tip lasts for around 2 months; I kid you not).

What with work and blogging, I used to go through a full-length MAC pencil once every 3 months. This ended up saving me money in the longer run.

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4. BH Cosmetics Eye Blending Brush

This totally was not a brush I was expecting to like so much. I don’t use this to blend eye shadows. It’s big and thick and soft enough that it’s a FANTASTIC brush for applying setting powder over concealer, under your eyes and blemishes etc. Especially good if you don’t like over-applying powder, and want to be precise and subtle with it.

Plus, it’s $2.96. Link to brush here.

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5. Horse Oil

This might sound like the strangest beauty product to those who’ve never heard of it, but horse oil is popular in Japan as an anti-aging and healing skin aid because of its ability to protect skin barrier. 

(No horses are harmed as far as I know. Like Lanolin from sheep, horse oil is literally horse sebum and extracted from their coats/skin.)

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6. Clarins White Plus HP Emulsion SPF20

I love how Clarins skincare and body care products always have the most divine, fresh aromas. This oil-free day lotion is no different.

It’s silky-smooth, lightweight emulsion absorbs quickly, and is fantastic for oily/combination to normal skins that don’t like heavy creams and lotions. I’m not 100% sure about availability in US/EU, as many “white” lines are exclusive to Asia. 

If it’s there, it might also be listed under a different name because the West doesn’t share that same Eastern obsession with pale-ness (hence “white plus”).

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7. Guerlain L’Instant de Guerlain eau de parfum

Hopelessly addicted to this honey-based scent. It’s long-lasting, silky and comforting without smelling juvenile or sticky-sweet. Plus, I always buy mine from an offline discount store for a pretty good price. (Under US$50 for a 1.7oz bottle of EDP concentration, vs US$95-100 retail.)

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8. The Body Shop Home Fragrance Oils (Jasmin & Frangipanier, Bois de Santal
& Gingembre)

Jasmin & Frangipanier - I love Jasmine, I love Frangipani. Put essential oils of both sweet, ethereal flowers in concentrated amounts into one bottle and then put it on sale a few dollars? I’m sold.

Bois de Santal & Gingembre - this sweet, ambery, spicy scent reminds me of my S$160 bottle of Five O’Clock au Gingembre by Serge Lutens. Except it’s dirt cheap and concentrated enough to fill up my entire room. LOVE it. 

I dilute a few drops of these with pure denatured alcohol, add in water, and then spray it on clothes, bedding, etc.

Crystal Blue (MAC Shimmermint and The Body Shop 42 Midnight Blue)

This is a super-simple, sparkly, colorful eye look that you can do in a few minutes with max impact.

You will need just 2 shadow shades and a mascara.

A sparkly mineral or baked shadow (I am using a limited edition shade called Shimmermint by MAC, but you can always try shades like L’oreal Innocent Turquoise or something like MAC Mineralize Eye Shadow in Bright Moon or the regular shadow in Aquadisiac for those with paler skin tones.)

If you want, use ANY color you want; pink, gold, lilac, green… Just match it to a corresponding dark shade (burgundy or win for pink, brown for gold, dark violet for lilac, etc).

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Step 1: Because so many baked or high-sparkle shadows are low on pigmentation, you’ll need to wear them dampened for more intensity. All I do here is dampen my finger in clean water, dab it against the back of my hand so it’s not too wet, and then run it over the shadow.

You end up with something like an intense gel or cream shadow which you can simply smooth over your lids with your finger.

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Step 2: With a flat brush (flat brushes pick up less pigment and allow you to control exactly where you place it), pack a dark navy blue into the outer corners of the lids and run it along the lower lash line as well. Blend it slightly into the pale shade.

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Step 3: Curl lashes and apply black mascara to finish!