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MAX FACTOR Facefinity All Day Flawless 3 in 1 Primer, Concealer & Foundation
C40 Light Ivory
This was such an unexpected and pleasant surprise. I had the previous version of this foundation and it sucked. The new formula is a big improvement. It looks so good on the skin – smooth, there’s no foundation sinking into pores, it covers about a medium and the finish is a non-dry looking matte. Formula is thick, but with the RT sponge it blends seamlessly. It’s not ideal for my dry skin, as my skin can feel tight with it, but with good skin care under it, it works fine. Shade C40 Light Ivory matches me ok and it’s a slightly deeper shade than Revlon’s Colorstay 110 Ivory.
REAL TECHNIQUES Miracle Complexion Sponge
This has been around for so long, it’s even been in local drugstores for a few years, but I’ve only tried it now and I saw straight away why it’s so popular. It’s very soft and I find the large flat area especially useful for blending foundation. It doesn’t absorb too much foundation, even when used dry and it makes the foundation look so flawless, by that I mean looking natural. It’s a little bit better when used wet, but it works dry as well.
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This month I started wearing black eyeliner in the waterline again after a long time. Maybelline’s Tattoo Liner has been my favourite classic eyeliner for many years because it’s so soft, intense black, glides on the skin easily and it lasts. Towards the end of the month I got sent Milani’s eyeliner and in several ways it’s even better – it’s a deeper black and it lasts even longer, the only thing it’s not as good as is that it doesn’t glide as smoothly as Maybelline. Both are great.
I used this most of the month instead of an eyeshadow for an easy and quick look. I just lined the eyes at the top and bottom and then smudged the line. Occasionally I bothered to put some matte taupe from Colourpop’s That’s Taupe palette on the eyelids. Deborah’s shade is one of my favourite kind, a greenish gold and the formula is very pigmented, glides easily and can be smudged nicely.
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MILANI COSMETICS Fruit Fetish Lip Oil
Passion Fruit Coconut
Just another lip oil I had a chance to try and it’s another good one. Unlike the others I own, this one has a nice warm, tropical scent and a sweet taste. It’s not as impressively glossy as Catrice’s, nor long lasting as A’Pieu, but that fact it’s scented is a plus to me. I have the red Raspberry Peach version too, which has a candy berry scent, but I prefer the Passion Fruit Coconut one.
REVLON Colorstay Matte Lite Crayon
004 Take Flight and 010 Air Kiss
More Revlon lip products that are great. Of course Suede Ink come at the top for me, but these are more classic matte lipsticks that some may find more comfortable, since they aren’t dry-to-the-touch matte. These are intense, creamy and appy without dragging. Their crayon-pencil-like shape means they are precise and also suited for thin lip. There is a sharpener included in the back, so you can create a sharp tip when needed. I have 6 shades, but from the selection I mostly like the natural-looking 004 Take Flight, a nice every-day colour and 010 Air Kiss, a classy cool red.
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I’ve been wearing Essence’s Baby Got Blush 01 Tickle me pink that I mentioned in the last favourites all month. Over it I’ve been wearing the highlighter shade from the Holiday Skin palette, as it contains very fine shimmer and together they create this very fresh, luminous look. Baby got blush is a classic pink on me with no peachy tones and the highlighter is a neutral champagne shade that compliments it.
This has been on my nails for at least three weeks. Mostly because I didn’t have time to do my nails properly and I just kept applying a fresh coat on top before taking videos. But it is a nice shade, especially for this time of the year and the quality is good. It’s a deeper version of Essie’s Bahama Mama, a dark pinkish purple. It’s a jelly shade that’s even with the first coat, but isn’t opaque until the second.
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REDKEN Acidic Bonding Concentrate Shampoo
This has such a lovely rich and thick formula. It produces a dense foam and doesn’t feel like a sulphate-free formula – it’s a joy to use. Redken says that it reinforces weakened bonds, but it’s not a miraculous product, at least on my hair. I just like that it doesn’t leave my hair stripped or tangled – I don’t think I can expect much more on my thick hair from a shampoo that’s washed off quickly, but there are many reviews that praise it as exceptional for repairing damage. I’d like to try the conditioner, mask and leave-in from this line.
UPDATES
BOURJOIS Healthy Mix Serum
Last week I got this exciting new formula in my mail and in all 8 shades sold here. I’m a fan of the Healthy Mix foundation, even the newly reformulated one (though it used to be better). They discontinued their Serum formula a while ago, a foundation I used for years and now they released a new “serum” version, this time the skin care/foundation hybrid that so many brands launched in the last years. Shade range is lacking, as they have two 51 shades and no 50 that I use at HM foundation, so none of the shades match me, but 51,2W is sort of the best. Formula is like all the others such foundations, a very light liquid formula and as with most the pipette doesn’t pick up the formula well – I don’t know what’s wrong with a classic closed bottle with a pump for such formulas? Coverage is light-medium, finish is glowy from the start, but on my dry skin it eventually becomes matte. Compared to the foundation the serum covers less. Unlike most serum foundations, most notably Maybelline’s SuperStay Vitamin C Skin Tint Serum and Catrice’s Tinted Serum, this one doesn’t make my skin texture obvious and looks more fresh. This formula may appeal to those that loved the old HM foundation and find the new one too shiny, as this one is much lighter and has less of a glow, but it has less coverage and they need to expand the shade range for pale shades.
It may feature in the new monthly favourites, but I’m still trying it out. On IG I have a video applying it at the end of
this highlighted stories group (until I erase it).
I’m not one to wear bright coloured mascaras often, but I have to praise these because they show up well on my dark lashes and the formulas are volumising. All are regular formulas, so not ideal for my lashes, but that’s irrelevant for you, all you need to know is that if you’re looking for a coloured mascara, these do the job. Purple may be the most interesting for those with hazel eyes for emphasizing the eye colour without going super bold, as this shade is a deeper plum. The other two, 301 Electric Blue and 500 Emerald Green are bold as the come and for those who dare more with their makeup, or for special occasions like dressing up for Carnivals/Halloween.
WISHLIST AND WHAT’S NEW
NATASHA DENONA I need a Nude Palette – a decent-looking neutral palette that isn’t overly warm – still a rarity. To be fair, it looks very similar to Colourpop Stone Cold Fox palette, which is also great quality for half the price.
MILANI Baked Blush 01 Dolce Pink – trying Luminoso and seeing its glow reminded me I wanted a more pink shade for me of this formula. I have Petal Primavera, which is a more suited shade for me than Luminoso, but it’s still too warm-peachy for my liking on my skin tone.
ESSENCE Merry X-mas Mydeer! Liquid Blush – this is a part of this year’s Christmas collection which also has a cure reindeer lip balm. Blush looks most interesting to me. I saw a swatch on Tik Tok and it looks like it may work as a lip colour too.
REAL TECHNIQUES Miracle 2-In-1 Powder Puff – this is new and it combines the same texture as the sponge has on one side and a velvet side for powder on the other. Inside is a silicone core. It’s used dry.
MAX FACTOR Facefinity Multi Perfector Concealer – Since I love the foundation, this looks interesting to me. I’m hoping it’s not too dry matte, like such concealers usually are.
AFRODITA COSMETICS Why Mask Bakuchiol and Niacinamide – new masks by Afrodita. These are classic creamy ones, not with a sheet. Niacinamide one has a 5% content.
REDKEN Acidic Bonding Line – shampoo impressed me, so I’d like to try the rest of the line. There’s a pre-wash treatment, but I’d prefer to have either a conditioner or mask. There’s also two leave-ins, a creamy one and a light liquid one.
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