Luview: Haul and Review

Hi everyone. I've read such good things about the Korean Brand Luview, that I decided I must try them out for myself. I bought some products from their online shop which ships internationally.

I bought the following products:

Crystal Mineral Pact

Real Skin Primer BB Cream

Whitening Capsule BB Cream

Glossy Kiss

I normally wouldn't buy so many products from a brand I've never tried before, but the prices were so reasonable I couldn't resist.

I'll review each product in separate posts, and today I'll review the Whitening Capsule BB Cream.

I do love the packaging of Luview products. They were far more superior than what I would have expected for the price. The Whitening BB Cream is housed in a sleek bottle with push top nozzle.

This cream is said to have whitening and moisturising effects. It has a medium to thick consistency which is easily applied and blended. Initially white, the cream blends to a pale beige (which matches my skintone exactly) with micro shimmer.

The cream half-blended:

The cream fully blended:

The cream on my skin:

I'm quite impressed with the coverage of this BB cream. It has a medium coverage which looks light and natural on the skin. The coverage is good enough to even out my skintone and covers any redness on my skin. I do not think the cream alone would be enough to cover any potential blemishes.

I love the finish of this BB cream. It doesn't cake and give that 'obvious makeup' look. It just covers small imperfections and gives a flawless, radiant finish.

I found this cream to be long lasting, and best of all - it does not irritate my sensitive skin.

Pros:

Great Packaging

A Little of the product goes a long way

Good Coverage with a flawless finish

Does not irritate my skin

Contains ethereal looking micro shimmer

(and I normally detest shimmer)

Cons:

Not to keen on the strong scent

Would like it to contain SPF

Western BB Creams: Garnier Miracle Skin Perfector BB Cream

Another Western Brand has jumped on the BB Cream wagon. Garnier has come up with their Miracle Skin Perfector Daily All-In-One BB Cream. For an intro into the Western perspective of BB Creams, this Daily Mail Article makes quite a good read.

List of ingredients:

This is priced at £9.99 for a 50ml Tube.

Product Claims:

-24h hydration

-UV protection

-primer and skin perfecter

-blurs redness, sunspots

-smooths fine lines

-illuminates and brightens

and a quote from Garnier website: Go B.B! In just one step, even, cover, hydrate, illuminate and help protect your skin.

The product comes in a fairly small tube beige coloured shiny tube. The tube has a flip top cap for the product to be squeezed out.

The BB cream comes in 2 shades; light and medium. I bought 'Light'.

Light is pale to medium beige shade. My my skin it comes out a shade darker (and more bronze) than my natural skin colour. It would be perfect for those wanting a Summer glow. But for those who desire pale, porcelain skin, I think you will find this shade a little too dark.

Once blended it gives the skin a gorgeous glow.

The BB cream on my skin:

My Thoughts:

Texture and Scent

The BB cream is has the texture of a really thick tinted moisturiser. However, it is light enough to spread easily onto the skin. The cream feels quite nice of dry to normal skin, but I worry that it might be too greasy for those with combination-oily skin. It has a pleasant, fresh, floral scent.

Colour and Coverage

As I mentioned earlier, 'Light' is a little to dark for my MAC NC15-20 skin. Coverage is medium to sheer, similar to tinted moisturiser if applied sparingly. Does not conceal spots or sun-spots. Coverage is build-able. The best thing bout this cream is that it gives the skin an amazing healthy, natural looking glow. This BB cream is pretty long-wearing. It's also fairly hydrating, though I wouldn't use this instead of my normal moisturiser.

Differences to Asian BB Creams:

-no ashy grey undertone

-sheerer coverage (would not function as a foundation)

-shades are darker than that of Asian BB creams

-does not contain whitening benefits

Pros:

-contains mineral pigments to even out skintone

-provides gorgeous natural looking glow

-contains SPF

-sheer build-able coverage

- covers minor imperfections

Cons:

-limited shade range, light was too dark for me

- some might find SPF15 too low

-may be too greasy for combination-oily skins

-some may find coverage too sheer

Sunplay Skin Aqua Moisture BB Cream Review

Today I'm reviewing a great BB cream that I bought from Sasa.com awhile ago.

I like to keep my makeup light, especially in Summer when the weather is warm and too much product makes my face feel/look greasy. I decided to try this BB cream out for special occasions where I want a little coverage on my skin, but still want natural looking skin. The Mentholatum Sunplay Skin Aqua Moisture BB Cream SPF27PA++ sells for ~US$ 17, and is one of my favourite BB creams so far.

Front View:

Back:

This BB cream claims the following properties:

sun protection

whitening

moisturising

anti-ageing

oil control

concealer

foundation

The BB cream has a thick, creamy consistency, and a nice smooth texture. Like most BB creams, it only comes in one shade. Unlike other BB creams, this one doesn't have a greyish tinge to it. Instead, the colour is a warm beige when squeezed out of the tube.

When spread out, the colour turns slightly lighter.

I find that the resulting colour matched my skintone exactly.

Here's a picture of my skin with the BB cream.

Texture, coverage, and scent:

The BB cream is pretty thick, which makes application a little hard. Once spread evenly, it provides good medium coverage. Less is more with this cream, applying too much would give a slight cakey effect and would also be difficult to apply. It has a light scent which is hard to describe (but not unpleasant). I found that the BB cream does have a moisturising effect on the skin, but would still use if over my daily moisturiser.

Finish:

I love the finish of this BB cream. Eventhough it's a moisturising BB cream it does not leave an oily looking finish. Instead, the effect is more demi-matte. A plus point is the radiant glow it gives my skin despite being slightly matte.

Pros:

-contains SPF

-gives a dewy finish yet does not look oily

-good coverage

-did not irritate my skin

Cons:

-not available in the UK

Western BB Creams: Vichy Aera Mineral BB

Vichy Aera Mineral BB Skin Breathing Blemish Balm Cream (SPF20)

Whilst shopping in a Watson's in KL, I came across a BB cream from the French brand, Vichy. As Vichy products contain thermal spa water, and has a great reputation, I decided to give this BB cream a try.

This is the outer packaging. I'm so sorry it got squashed in my luggage!

I really like the packaging of the cream itself. It's in a sleek pearly beige tube, looks nice and minimalist.

The cream only comes in one shade, a light beige colour.

According to Vichy:


"Specially developed for Asian women.

High purity mineral pigments associated with Vichy Thermal Spa Water:
1. Instant natural skin tone self-unification
-Blemishes and wrinkles visibly fade out immediately. Complexion is naturally unified all day long.2. Healthier looking skin:
-Thanks to powerful antioxidants and UV filters, skin is protected day after day. Its original pre radiance is like recovered.
3. Ultra-safe formula
-Tested under dermalogical control. Hypoallergenic, non-pore cloggin, and free of fragrance and paraben. allos skin to breathe as if bare skin."

*OK, just to let you know, I've copied them word for word. As you can see, the English in some places is not quite right*

Ingredients:
Aqua, cyclopentasiloxane, dimethicone, glycerin, ethylhexl methoxycinnimate, HDI, hexyllactone, PEG-10 dimethicone, pentylene glycol, dimethicone, magnesium sulphate, propylene glycol, Bis-digyceryl polyacyladipate-2, sodium stearoyl glutamate, ascorbyl glucoside tocopheryl acetate, caprylyl gylcol, lactobacillus ferment, titanium dioxide, Iron oxides

My thoughts:

Texture and Scent

This products has a creamy consistency. It dries fairly quickly, so a tip would be to apply it onto your face quickly! If too much product is applied, it could give the skin a slightly 'caked' look, so I would recommend applying this cream sparingly. It's not very moisturising on my skin, so I would use this on top of a moisturiser.

It has a light, subtle scent, which is hard to describe. I've read it described somewhere as 'plasticky', but since the scent is subtle you don't really notice it.

Colour and Coverage

It only comes in one shade, that is of a light beige. Unlike tradiational BB creams, this shade doesn't have the slightest grey-cast to it. The colour matches my skin perfectly, and I've not really noticed any oxidation of colour. The coverage is very sheer, alot sheerer than most BB creams. It would not conceal any acne or any skin imperfections. It does, however, give the skin a nice looking finish. The finish is slightly matt, compared to the dewy finish of other BB creams. I found the BB cream to be pretty long lasting and I didn't need to reapply it during the day.

In the pic below, I'm wearing this BB cream on top of moisturiser. As you can see, it does not give me a flawless skin effect. I also found that it did not do much for my skin. It didn't cover my skin imperfections. However, it does look nice and natural with a matt looking finish.

Would I recommend it?

I would recommend it to those who have no skin concerns and are looking to even out their skintone and having a flawless finish. I like it because it did not irritate my skin, even when my skin's at its most sensitive. There are other BB creams out there that I prefer. It doesn't act as a concealer, primer and a foundation all in one. I would say it's more similar to a tinted moisturiser.

Pros:

- contains SPF20

- made from a skincare brand that I really like

- does not irritate my skin

- feels light and my skin looks really natural

- long lasting finish

Cons:

- only available in Asia

- pricey at ~£20

- coverage may be much too sheer

- some may describe the scent as 'plasticky'

Valentine's Inspired FOTD and OOTD using Jill Stuart Blush Blossom 03

Hi everyone! Valentine's day is coming up soon, so I've done a Valentine's Inspired FOTD for the occasion! I aimed for a soft, romantic look using lots of peaches and pinks.

Products Used:

Face

Vichy Aera Mineral BB Cream

Jill Stuart Blush Blossom 03 Lady Amaryllis

Eyes

Maybelline Eye Quad in Autumn Spirit

Collection 2000 Extreme Eye Liner

Max Factor False Lash Effect Mascara

Lips

Dior Lipstick in Rose Chic

I wanted soft, fluttery lashes, so I chose to use my favourite Max Factor's False Lash Effect Mascara.

I used my new Vichy BB Cream to even out my skintone. The BB cream is super sheer and light. I wanted soft, pretty peachy-pink cheeks for the romantic look. I applied my Jill Stuart Blush Blossom in 03, using the two colours blended together. I used my new Dior lipcolour in Pink Chic for pink lips.

Below is my very first Outfit of the day (OOTD). It's what I would wear to a Valentine's dinner if only the weather was nice and warm! I must apologise for the bad quality. I had my camera at the complete wrong setting! I see a lot of girl with really nice OOTD poses. In my pics, I'm just standing there, so I'm sorry for the lack of poses:

a) my full-length mirror is between my show collection and my wardrobe, so there's not much room to move

b) I really can't pose

My dress is from a small boutique in Bangsar Baru, KL which I bought last year. It has a silver-bronze detailing around the neckline, which you can see in my FOTD pics. My nude shoes are from Dune. Before I go, I want to wish you all a Happy Valentine's Day for Monday!

Western BB creams: Lancome UV Expert BB Base SPF50+++ Review

BB creams have been popular in Asia for many years now, and Western brands have recently caught on making their own versions of the cream. Here is a quick review on Lancome's UV Expert BB Base SPF50 PA+++.

The product in packaged in a small 30ml tube. Great for travelling, or carrying around in your bag.

The ingredients list:

Like most BB creams, this only comes in one shade, a pale beige. My guess is that this colour would only suit those with fair skin.

This is the cream partially blended on my skin. You can see there is a slight grey-cast to it:

However, once fully blended the grey cast almost fully disappears:

The BB cream on my face. It give a nice dewy finish:

And an FOTD using the BB cream (my skin looks a different shade in the 2 pics due to different lighting conditions):

According to Lancome:

'This incredibly lightweight texture unifies skin tone to ideally cover imperfections, such as brown spots, blemishes and fine lines.

Upon application, your complexion looks naturally flawless and even with enhanced make-up result. Skin is protected, visibly brightened, moisturised, soft and smooth, glowing with healthy translucency.'

My Thoughts:

Texture, scent and shade

The cream had a medium to thick consistency, which spreads easily over the skin. It's not as thick as most BB creams. The scent is pretty strong and smells of a flowery perfume. As previously mentioned, it only comes in one shade. The colour is a pale beige and will only match those with lighter skin colour.

Coverage

Coverage is not as good as most BB creams, but I found it to give the perfect amount of coverage for those with already good skin and want to even out their skintone. The finish is great! Really nice and glowy, making the skin look more radiant. Because the cream looks so dewy and glowy, it may look a bit on the shiny side on those with oily skin types.

Due to the light coverage, I found this cream to act more of a tinted SPF cream rather than a BB cream.

Staying power and oil control

I found the cream to have decent staying power. I'm not sure how well this cream fares for combination to oily skin types, or those living in tropical climates. It's winter here and my skin is currently normal to dry. As the cream is super dewy and has no mattifying effects, it may be too oily for some.

Would I recommend this BB cream?

I would recommend this cream to those with good skin and are looking for sheer to medium coverage to even out their skintone. I LOVE the fact that it contains SPF50. The bonus of this cream is the nice radiant glow it gives the skin. Having said that, this cream is pretty expensive (~£30) for such a small tube so I think it may not be worth it. There are less expensive creams out there who might do the job just as well.

Pros:

-SPF 50
-sheer to medium coverage, gave a lovely radiant, glowy finish

-compact enough to carry around in handbag

Cons:

-expensive at RM165 (~£30) for a small 30ml bottle

-too much fragrance, irritated my skin slightly

-coverage may be too light for some tastes

- only comes in one shade, too light for those with darker skintones

Missha M Shiny BB Cream Review

I wrote this post ages ago, and completely forgot about it!

I'm reviewing another BB cream, this time it's Missha's M Shiny BB cream SPF27 PA++. I bought this at Cosme-de.com which does free shipping worldwide. It comes in this really pretty and cute pearly tube:



This BB cream is said to contain pearl powder to give a radiance to your skin. It's moisturizing and antioxident ingredients protect your skin and provides a natural glow. I'm a huge fan of dewy, radiant skin so this BB cream sounded hugely promising.

I was very excited when my BB cream arrived. I found gave a nice, light, even coverage. It wasn't a thick cream, so it was easy to apply and spreads quite well. I also liked the fact that it contains SPF, and felt moist and comfortable on the skin.

However despite all this, I'm not a big fan of this BB cream. The dissapointing thing about it was it's glitter overload. It's really difficult to see in the picture below, but the BB cream was much to glittery for my taste. You can just make out white flecks in the pic which are light reflected from the glittery particles. The glitter is much more apparent in real life than in this pic.



My concern about how glittery this cream is grew when I tried it on my face. I was happily working on my laptop, when my husband came to see how I was doing. He greeted me with 'hello sparkly face'. Appalled, I looked in the mirror under bright light to see my face was extremely sparkly. I felt lit up like a Christmas tree. After that, I have never used this BB cream again.

Rating:

This BB cream definately had its good points, but the sparkles but me off it, hence the rating above. I've read reviews though, where others have not found this cream too glittery. Maybe my batch was particularly sparkly, or it could be that everyone has a different sparkle threshold.

Sakura Inspired FOTD

Finally it's springtime! And around this time Cherry Blossoms are beginning to bloom. The sakura cherry blossoms are incredibly beautiful. I'm going to Japan this spring/summer, but sadly I'll miss the blossoming!

Anyway, in the spirit of Sakura and springtime, I've decided to do a fresh looking FOTD using spring colours of green, pink and peach.

The products used for this look is shown below:

Face:
Skin79 The Oriental Gold BB Cream
MAC Cremeblend Blush - so sweet so easy (Mac in lillyland)
MAC Cream Colour Base - Luna

Eyes:

Paul and Joe Eye Colour Primer - 01

MAC Eyeshadow - Pearlmatte (Mac in lillyland)

MUFE Aqua Eyes Eyeliner - 2L

Clinique High Lengths Mascara (not shown in pic - oops)

Lips:
Chanel Rouge Coco - Gardenia 13

Shu Uemura Gloss Unlimited - RD133S

This is the BB cream I am wearing:

This BB cream has a fairly thick consistency and provides light to medium coverage. It has a light floral scent which I love. What I like most about this BB cream is that it gives a nice glowing finish, with no need for powder to set. The coverage is light enough to let enough of my real skin show through, for a natural look.

I then applied a tiny amount of the MAC colour base in Luna to my cheeks to highlight my cheekbones, followed my the MAC cremeblend blush on the apples of my cheeks.

On my eyes, I used the MAC pearlmatte.

After applying the Paul and Joe eye colour primer, I used the pearly white shade all over the upper lid. I then used the spring green colour on my upper eyelid, and lined the lower eyelid with the pink.

I then added a touch of brown eyeliner, followed by mascara:

On my lips, I used Chanel's new Rouge Coco in Gardenia. It gave a really pretty pale petal pink colour.

I applied Shu Uemura's gloss unlimited on top for extra shine, and to deepen the colour.

Here's the finished sakura inspired FOTD. I wore a peach dress to match:

To finish this spring look I've added a sweet pink NOTD, using Essie nail colour in Princess Pink.