1. It promises to fight seven (7) signs of ageing – fine line and wrinkles, rough texture, uneven skin tone, dullness, prominent pores, age spots and dryness.

2. And like all great moisturizers, it’s oil-free, fast absorbing, dermatologically-tested and is non-comedogenic.

3. The formula is supposed to be lightweight. I think it’s a little thick, though it’s actually fine for day use because it absorbs really well. And skin is supposed to stay “refreshed” because of the “cooling essence from mint and cooling water” … but that I’m afraid I’m not sensitive enough? Because didn’t notice, nope.

4. On my normal to dry skin, it’s non-greasy and doesn’t leave me with an oil slick after a long day – even with a layer of sunblock on.

5. The moisturizer also contains pigments to cover skin imperfections – which works well enough, on weekends I just slather this on, layer with sunblock and cover with concealer – and I’m done!

6. BUT – it has a really, really strong floral scent – which reminds me of strong soap. A bit of a turn-off, really.

7. Yes, it does keep my skin moist and plump all day. Get past the overpowering floral scent, and this is a keeper.

And to add to that …

I always find myself returning to Olay in-between testing out new creams. For the simple reason that I find the moisturizers fuss-free, with the main aim of keeping skin supple and problem-free. It’s the reason why I continue to recommend to anyone looking for simple, good ol’ no-nonsense moisturizers.

Want more proof? Olay is currently the number one beauty brand in the world, with a value of about $11.8 billion – two years running!

A few weeks ago I was invited by Paris B to join the Evurl girls in a delightful exercise – come up with five beauty products I would include in a Beauty Box.

I’ll admit that it took forever to decide on them, because how on earth do you narrow all the best products you’ve tried to just five? I first thought I’d pick five random ones that I liked – for body, to hair and etc. Then I figured since I have an obsession with red lipstick, why not pick five “starter” reds for anyone who’s ever wanted to start wearing red lips. But in the end, I knew I wanted to only feature five products in a way that kinda makes sense – the five that can make the perfect face.

So I present to you, in no particular order … the Fabulous Five!

Chanel Les 4 Ombres – Quadra Eye Shadow in Kaska Beige

I have this in my makeup bag on days when I have an event right after work, because the colours are absolutely gorgeous and easily work for day and night – you can have a look here. The palette is from Chanel’s Spring 2010 collection, and has a pale champagne, a matte chocolate, a shimmery honey bronze that is almost a caramel, and a deep brown with a plum base – also with shimmer in it. Neutral colours with so much potential!  

Garnier B.B Cream

This has to be my all-time favourite B.B. cream – at only RM19.90! It evens out skin tone like a dream, and is easy to apply, thanks to great texture, and great lasting power. I do cheat a little with this – sometimes when I’m just too lazy to slap on sunblock I go with this one – though please take note that I do NOT recommend this – just me being really slack! The BB Cream promises 10 benefits, and I think it has managed to deliver most of what it promises – including giving skin a smoother finish, radiance and a healthy glow, reducing redness and imperfections.

Lipstick Queen 15 Minutes of Fame Pop Art Gloss in 9 Minutes

I’ve always been a fan of Poppy King, since my uni days in Australia – and I remember being absolutely delighted when she launched Lipstick Queen. This gloss has no shimmer, no glimmer, no stickiness – just pure, clean, creamy colour. A no-fuss gloss, the formula contains emollients, hyaluronic acid and Vitamin E to keep lips as kissable as the colour is juicy. And speaking of colour, it’s described as a luscious scarlet, and that’s what it is. Packaging is great, the twist-pen and brush applicator distributes out just the right amount of colour.

Rimmel Scandal’eyes Mascara

My current go-to daily mascara, this has a nice big wand to produce big, fat lashes with. Although I don’t recommend this on lower lashes – the wand is a little too big and application can get messy – I will pile this on upper lashes. The formula doesn’t dry out and go all flaky on you, and neither does it get sticky and glue your lashes together like some volumising mascaras. And because it is a volumising mascara, the formula is a little gooey, so you need to give the brush a bit of a clean through with a tissue paper to be able to get great application.

Laura Mercier Second Skin Cheek Colour in Wild Bouquet

Love Second Skin Cheek Colour. Period.

Okay, okay – I know the colour doesn’t look like much in the pan, looks boring even, but this is a great peach-based nude to wear any time, any occasion. Payoff is great, intensity is medium and you really don’t have to spend too long or use too many layers to make it work if you are fair or have light skin tone. I love the way it perks up your look!

So there you have it, products that have not failed me. Also pulled a look incorporating all of them for you to get an idea..

Now go find out what my other beauty blogging babes have decided to include in their Beauty Box!

• MyWomen Stuff
• Beautyholics Anonymous 
• Beauty Cabby
• Beauty up My Life
• Beetrice’s Reviews
• Belle de Moiselle
• My Views and Reviews
• Pretty Beautiful
• Rinnah’s Consumer Reviews
• Skin Deco
• SoLoverly
• Geek Chic

Last week I was invited to Lancôme’s Rouge in Love Bloggers Party held in conjunction with the Rouge in Love roadshow at Suria KLCC.

I was happy to be invited not just because I’m back on the blogging bandwagon, but also because it was a chance to catch up with some of the Evurl girls who were also attending!

To be perfectly honest, I was a little late – but managed to get into the action with the girls with some face painting (it was part of the event). The rest of my time there was spent just trying out as many colours as I could.

First impressions of Rouge in Love? Pretty, pretty colours – not as pigmented as I would have liked, very moisturizing, and has amazing shine. Two colours I absolutely loved was 375B (Bold Fuhsia) – the very same worn by Emma Watson in the ad campaign, and 155B (Miss Coquelicot).

I’ll be talking about the lipstick itself in a later post – but for now I’ll leave you with the few pictures.

375B – Bold Fuhsia

Thanks to Connie for the shot!

The very same shade on me, Dom and Beetrice!

 155B – Miss Coquelicot

155B on me

With my girl, Tough Cookie - and face-painted by Connie!

Lancôme Rouge in Love lipstick is available for RM75 at counters nationwide.

To celebrate the 50^th Anniversary of Dior Vernis and artist Holton Rower’s solo show at Hole Gallery in NYC, a special showing was held earlier this month where Holton made use of Dior Vernis bottles to help create the shape of the pour.

For those not familiar with Holton Rower, he is an artist who specialises in pour art – where he creates breathtaking pour paintings by pouring paint onto flat or 3-D surfaces to create visual – and oftentimes psychedelic masterpiece. And he’s not cheap either – Justin Beiber apparently bought a piece for USD60,000.

Apparently, about 5,000 unique colours were used for this piece – whether or not the five selected Dior Vernis shades were used, I am not sure – but I can tell you that the five Dior colours that were “included” in the art work were Red Royalty #999, Nirvana #704, Psychedelic Orange #545, Gris Montaigne #707 and Flapper Pink #453.

I think for an artist to work pour art, it takes a whole lotta creative imagination, because whole you can perhaps visualise it, you won’t be able to tell how it’s going to turn out in the end, you’re literally going with the flow!

Words really can’t describe this – so see what I mean and watch!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oEwYMUaqX3Q

A good blush colour can work wonders and knock ten years off, because apparently, that rosy flush “recaptures the essence of youth.” In a study carried out at the University of St Andrews, rosy cheeks were perceived as healthier, younger and more attractive – thanks to healthy blood vessels. And apparently, our blood vessels were also affected by levels of sex hormones, which diminish with age.

Isn’t that just depressing?

Which is why the most important thing about blush (apart from the right colour) is location, location, location!

It’s all about adding colour to the apples of your cheeks to get a youthful flush, and there’s no need to be afraid to take the colour quite high and towards the nose. A make-up artist I know even takes the colour down towards the jaw to mimic a flush. Very romantic, I tell you.

The trick to this is to use a nice, sheer formula, and I’ve got just the one for you – Hervana by Benefit. 

The latest addition to Benefit’s Box O’ Powders, Hervana is described as a “soft orchid blossom flush”, though I’d be really grateful if anyone can describe that that really means!

Hervana comes in a pinwheel design of four shades – Lucky Shell (pale beige), Divine Peach (a warm shimmery peach), Heavenly Rose (soft rosy peach) and Berry Delight (a deep pinky-plum) – and also has a slanted brush which I don’t use. I’ve tried swatching them individually, but gave up – it was just too much of a bother because the sections were too small.

But mix and give them a swirl with your brush, and you get a pretty warm peach-pink, though on my cheeks, it’s more a coral/peach flush. Then there’s also a slight shimmer which contributes to the soft glow.

What I’ve also started doing is to use Lucky Shell and Divine Peach on the eyes – and it works out like a dream when you want to go for a natural look.

Now the bit that bothered me about Hervana was that I really needed to work my brush to get the colours to come out. The featured look had LOADS of Hervana, I kid you not – almost three layers of it! Still, this will mean good things if you’re looking to keep the look natural as you’re able to really exercise control over the colour.

Like most Benefit cheek powders, I think this one’s a keeper. Try it.

Worked Hervana with Guerlain’s 4-Colour Eyeshadow in Écrin and Estée Lauder’s Pure Color Long Lasting Lipstick in Rose Tea.