This post is soooooo late – I’m sorry ladies! But please, have a look at what my favourite beauty blogging babes were up to in August!

What brush do you use to apply blush? Let Paris B from My Women Stuff show you.

I’m a huge fan of the brand, so it’s great to see Jenn from Lipgloss Eater loving Kiehl’s Dermatologist Solutions Ultimate Bright Surface Brightening Exfoliator too!

Kahani from SoLoverly is, once again, tempting me with another fabulous Daiso buy – the Italy Towel Glove.

Connie from Skin Deco worked metallics fabulously using The Body Shop’s Nomadic Goddess Collection!

When a mere balm helps cure insomnia, you just gotta sit up and listen. Read Xin’s post on the Badger Sleep Balm in Pretty Beautiful.

Beetrice of Beetrice’s Reviews fights off puffy eyes with Clinique’s All About Eyes Serum.  

Nikki Ask Me Whats talks about one of my favourite eyeliners ever – Maybelline’s Eye Studio Lasting Drama Gel Liner.

Kimora did it, M.A.C did it, and now Maybelline’s tied up with one of Japan’s most well-loved icon of cuteness, Hello Kitty. I mean, this little bobcat is a worldwide phenomenon, and has been so for decades. 

Ladies, feast your eyes on the Maybelline Volum’ Express Cat Eyes Mascara. 

What I liked … An adorable metallic pink shell. It still resembles the original packaging in terms of colour and some stripey bits. But heck, we’re all suckers for pretty things – and this has to be one of the prettiest mascara packaging I’ve laid eye on.  

Not too great … was the formulation. Like all volumising formulas, this clumps. First layer is fine, second layer starts getting all sticky and clumpy. It’s interesting to note that the “feline” brush is supposed to fatten lashes up – most comb applicators tend to work to lengthen, not fatten. Having said that, the comb applicator does allow for more control.

But does it work? That said, this one works pretty much like the original – it separates your lashes as you comb up, although I’m not too convinced that this does major volumising. What I do like about the comb is that it’s great for defining lower lashes, because unlike fat brushes, this one combs out every single lash. 

It stays on well enough – even at the end of a long day, my lashes look they way they did in the morning – which is good, because the packaging promises up to 18 hours of curl! And being waterproof, this takes extra work to take off – so you need to be a little patient and really soak in your lashes with your remover before you can really get it all off.  

All right then – as they always say, the proof is in the pudding. On to the pudding! 

 Before 

After 

Before

After 

Hang on – I’ve got more Hello Kitty for you!

Did you know … 

• The Kitty was first introduced in Japan 35 years ago? It’s as old as me!
• In 1999, a murderer in Hong Kong stuffed his victim’s head into a Hello Kitty doll. The murder was then known as the Hello Kitty Murder.
• Thai police officers who commit minor transgressions (like showing up late, or parking in the wrong spot) must wear Hello Kitty armbands for a few days as penance.
• There is a Hello Kitty-themed maternity hospital in Taiwan! Walk in and you will be overwhelmed – Hello Kitty is on the receiving blankets, room decor, linens, nurses’ uniforms, and even the birth certificate covers!

Available now exclusively at all Watsons for RM36.90

This is the most – for lack of a better word – bland lip balm I have ever come across. And it is also one of the best.

If you’re looking for something frou-frou that smells of mangoes or cherries or strawberries, something that imparts high shine, or even something that tastes of chocolate or vanilla, don’t look this way, because this lip balm ain’t it. In fact, come to think of it, rubbing this on feels no different from rubbing candle wax on your lips.

What this is, is a no-fuss lip balm, with the most delightful packaging!

I was approached by Organic Island a few months ago to test drive their Shell Lip Balm, and I said yes just from looking at looks of the product. Yes, I was swayed by how pretty it looked. Now what this Australian company does, is scour around for real recycled or damaged seashells, to be used as the containers for their all-natural lip balms. But, the seashells first go through a special blasting process (using sand and water) to clean them, and get the outer shells all nice and glossy. A silver wire cleverly entwined around the shell then holds both sides together.

Inside, you get a tiny mirror that is glued on one side, and your puddle of wax on the other. Depending on the size of your shell, the amount of balm ranges from 3-14g.

The balm itself is made of a natural mixture of coconut oil, mango-seed butter, macadamia oil, jojoba oil, rosehip oil, lanolin and beeswax. There’s no smell or colour as you apply (which you have to do with your finger).

It will remind you of plain ol’ candle wax, but it feels surprisingly light on the lips, and really, you don’t need much. Just a layer works nicely for me in the morning, and perhaps one more later in the evening. This thing moisturises lips really, really well. So well, that this is what’s been keeping my lips from getting all dried and chapped this Ramadhan. It also seems to hold colour nicely too, no issues with my reds sliding off.

All in all, this is a very rustic and charming little thing. And the fact that no two shells are alike makes it even more special. And this not only looks good, it works! Just don’t ask me what to do with the shells it’s finished. Melt my other lip balms to pour in perhaps?

To get your very own Shell Lip Balm, visit www.organicisland.com.au. Of course, do bear in mind that the shells will vary in pattern and size, and that not all shells would be completely sealed due to the varying shapes. The Shell Lip Balm is US$14.50 (before postage) each.

I just love Tokyo Lash Bar from Shu Uemura – where else can you find feathers and diamantes rolled up in one fabulous set of falsies? The 2010 Tokyo Lash Bar collection was launched a couple of weeks ago, and to my delight, the lashes up for offer were as wacky and bizarre, and glamorous, and fabulous as ever before. 

Not that you’d see me in them – I love to watch, not wear – though I will admit to having a few rather sparkly ones in store …

Anyway, this year’s collection is entitled Neo-Tokyo Odyssey, and was inspired by life in a futuristic metropolis. So you get an array of hi-tech, ultra-modern lashes on display. And of course, you get to gawk at the lash creations of Shu Uemura’s Black Book Artists. This year’s group include Chufan, Deric Lim, Deq Sha, Emma Mustafa, Najeeb, Surya Zainul and my two favourites, Stevensunny and Taisu.

The collection is divided into two groups, “We Are Stars” – where the wearable lashes are, and “Galaxy Goddess”, which features the more outrageous designs.

The girls were dressed by Joe Chia, the 2^nd Runner-Up of the Malaysia Young Designer Competition 2009.

Have a look.

Emma Mustafa

Stevensunny

Surya Zainul

Deric Lim

Najeeb

Chufan

Taisu

The notes of a fragrance are like the instruments in an orchestra, they all play their part. Here’s how they come together to create the score:

Top or head notes

The first smell when you apply a fragrance. Top notes contain ingredients that evaporate quicky: delicate florals, bergamot and other light citruses and herbs such as coriander and basil.

Mid or heart notes

The smell that kicks in a few minutes after the top notes. It usually contains rich florals – even in a fragrance that isn’t considered part of the floral family – because these compounds tend to be less volatile. The heart notes are important because they weave all the notes together to define the personality of the fragrance as a whole.

Base or bottom notes

The longest lasting ingredients that stabilise the fragrance and extend its staying power. They contain thick, heavy oils, such as those derived from plants (including vanilla, oakmoss, sandalwood and patchouli), or those that are synthesized to smell like animal-based ingredients (including musk, civet and ambergris)

Dry-down

The notes that stand out and linger after the fragrance ha dried on your skin. The dry-down scent varies from person to person, since it mixes w your skin’s natural scent.

*Extracted from a very old (forgotten) issue of Allure