Tarte Pin Up Girl Blush Palette

Hey beautiful!

I had to get this one up right away. After reading this review, head out to Sephora and grab yourself one (or two) of this Tarte Pin Up Girl palette before every single one of it runs out. Im considering getting one more as backup. Yikes!

I was kicking myself in the butt for not getting last year's palette and everyone raved how good it was. I've learnt my lesson, so this year i had to go get one before it runs out of stock. 

Packaging:

The palette is housed in a cute gold clutch-like casing. They also throw in a pearl and a rhinestone bobby pins to tie the theme together. The 'clutch' feels very sturdy, guessing it's made of plastic, wrapped in gold shiny cloth, and is lined with a thin layer of a spongy-type material as cushion in between. 

Inside, you get a decent size mirror and of course, the stars of the show, the 5 blushes.

The blushes:

If you have never tried Tarte blushes before, you better. Tarte blushes are bomb. They really do last on my face and are pigmented. The texture of the blushes are so smooth and soft without a single grit felt when i rubbed my finger on them. 

I love MAC blushes A LOT and has been using MAC blushes for 3 years now consistently. But just last week, i cheated on MAC and tried a Tarte one in the colour Magic and i found a new obsession. I will still love MAC because they have so many different colours and finishes available but i'll start using Tarte more often now because they are so pigmented and soft it's like silk running over my face. 

I've only first started using that Tarte blush in Magic JUST last week, and im singing praises to the sky about their blushes. Tells you just how much im sold and you need to get on that bandwagon if you havent already.

The variety of the blushes are well-thought out. There's a matte neutral beige colour, a deep berry with shimmer, a matte light pink, a matte peachy pink and a matte deep rose. Goes well with all kinds of eye look. And, convenient to bring to travel!

IMPORTANT: (A tip I learnt from my MUAs with regards to techniques) When picking up any other powder products, DO NOT SWIPE your brushes on the pan. The swiping motion will cause a lot of powder particles to loosen. You will then see plenty of loose powders forming and you have to blow off the product from the pan. This creates a lot of product wastage. Instead, they taught me to use dabbing motion with my brush. An example of product "kick-up":

Pic credits: google images

I hardly get this powdery "kick-up" on my pan. I have read reviews of beauty bloggers not liking how much "kick-up" this product creates, but that's only because the technique used in picking up the product isn't ideal and should be considered before bashing this product (or any other powder products for that matter).

Price:

This palette is great if you're just starting to dabble into Tarte blushes. There are 5 colours to test out for a fraction of the price at only SGD $59! It's super cost saving to get the palette compared to buying the individual full sized ones!  

Each of the blush pan in the palette carries 0.158oz of blushes and a full sized blush is 0.2oz. One full sized Tarte blush is about SGD $45? And this palette is only what, SGD $59! Ohh Yessssss! 

My Concern:

However, i do have one concern that i think may cause a problem to some people. Im tan (MAC NC40 shade) and the first colour, which is the matte beige, nearly matches my skin tone. It's still visible on my skin but im not sure how it'll show up on darker skin tone. On me, it pulls like a soft peachy beige colour and quite honestly, that's just one colour i have to build several (about 2-3) layers on to get the intensity of a beige blush and not just look like i've slapped on extra face powder particularly on my cheeks. (All the other blush colors needed one layer and boom, pigmentation!) Im predicting the first colour will run out faster than the other 4 since i have to layer it more to get the intensity and colour to my desired liking.

Verdict:
❤ ❤ ❤ ❤ out of 5

Sephora Haul #2 November 2014

Hey beauties!

It's only been a week since i last shopped at Sephora and i find myself going back and browsing through the aisles of Sephora yet again this week. Ahh help! 

I just couldnt stop thinking about the Tarte Pin up blush palette and my irrational fear of it going out of stock made me went out to get it. And i got a few other things as well, per usual. 

Also, Sephora Singapore is having a promotional campaign right now where they're giving out a free makeup bag with every 3 stamps collected, a tote bag with 6 stamps collected, and a makeup kit with every 9 stamps collected. To collect one stamp, all you have to do is spend $50 (for members) or $60 (for non-members)

I've collected 4 stamps so far and gotten a free makeup bag. It's has a silver and black sponged-print detail stamped all over in front and a plain black back that is sleek and shiny. Im thinking that it's made of faux leather material or PVC type material, something of that sort since the texture felt like that to me. The bag doesnt feel too flimsy or cheaply made. I'd say the quality is just nice to use as an everyday makeup bag. The bag is thin yet spacious enough and its size is slightly larger than an iPad. 

For makeup lovers out there, it's easy to score yourself a free makeup bag from Sephora Singapore. All you have to do is spend $150* or $180!* (*depending if you're a Sephora member or not) 

Promotion ends 24 December 2014.

Individual review on items bought will be in a separate blog post coming soon! 

*This is not a sponsored blog post. All writings and items bought in this post are solely by me.

Sephora November 2014 Haul

I wasnt planning on going shopping yesterday. It was mid-week and I needed a little pick me up so I wondered into Sephora. I wanted to get myself mentally prepared on all the holiday sets available so that i can purchase them in December when im in the holiday mood. I saw quite a few sets that caught my eyes and was resisting the urge to get them all right away. As starters, I picked up a few necessities but when December comes, it's showtime. 

Marc Jacobs Supercharged Gel Foundation Review

Hey beauties!

I bought a new foundation two months back and I've worn it several times now and took notice of how it wears. I guess it's time to post my review on it!

Marc Jacobs Genius Gel Super-Charged Foundation

MY SKIN TYPE:
1. Dry - Normal skin (depending on weather)
2. Sensitive skin

1. PRICE AND PACKAGING

SEPHORA - USD $48 / SGD $75 for (30ml or 1 fl. oz.)

I dont understand why makeup prices in Singapore/ Australia are RIDICULOUSLY expensive. I mean, drugstore foundations are SGD $30! $30 is enough to buy 6-7 Happy Meals and make 6-7 kids happy! But such is the price to pay for beauty. (Pun intended)

1. Frosted glass packaging with silver accent 
2. Lightweight bottle 
3. Black plastic cap 
4. Comes with a pump 
5. No SPF (Could not find the SPF on the box) 

2. COLOR/ SHADE
Even though this foundation is available in 16 shades (as per Marc Jacobs' website), however I don't think they sell all the 16 shades here in Singapore Sephoras. I saw only 8-10 shades on display. I got the Sephora Sales Assistant to colour match me and she picked out Shade 44 Golden Medium. (For reference i am NC40 in MAC, 3W1 Tawny in Estee Lauder, Punjab/Stromboli in NARS and N125 MUFE HD)

I could get away with one layer of 44 Golden Medium however putting on a second layer of the foundation will start to look green on me. I would say that the colour I got isn't straight up yellow but has a slight greenish tint to it. Perhaps most ideal for NC42 - tan and olive skin tones.

However, 16 shades in total is not a wide enough colour range to cater to the mass since we all have different undertones and overtones.

3. CONSISTENCY AND COVERAGE
When i checked the website, it says that the foundation contains coconut water extracts. But it sure don't smell like coconut to me. It smelled like straight up rose. For someone who's particular about smell, i would say that this will be mildly annoying since the scent does linger on the skin for a while. Also, my sensitive skin always have had bad relationships with products that contained rose extracts or "rose" scents/perfumes.

The name Supercharged "GEL" does make me expect a gel-like consistency however it is totally liquid. When pumped out onto the back of my hand, the foundation felt very lightweight and very runny.

It has a sheer to medium coverage, slightly buildable. I feel like one need to have a very good clear skin to begin with as the coverage is not enough to conceal major skin flaws like pimples/acnes, scarring or large red spots.

Fortunately, my skin is mostly clear and I don't have major issues with redness around my nose or mouth. However, i do have a small sun spot on my left cheek and one layer does not hide it. So i went ahead and pump a tiny amount and concentrate on stippling a second layer on that particular sun spot to conceal and it seemed to do the job.

Completely melted into my skin like water. Dries to a natural finish. Looks like skin.

HOW IT WEARS THROUGHOUT THE DAY:
I used the Real Techniques Buffing brush to apply. Since the coverage is sheer and has a 'watery' consistency, a beauty blender will soak up more product into the sponge than putting it on the skin.

As per normal, I applied a pea size amount of primer only on my laugh lines since foundations tend to settle and create noticeable lines there. For this review, I only powdered my T-Zone instead of my full face.

(8am) When I first put it on:

~The foundation felt really lightweight on the skin

~ Took about 15-20 minutes to completely set to a natural finish. 

~ Semi-matte, not dewy. 

~ Felt and looked like second skin 

~ Evened out my skin tone.

(3pm) After 7 hours of wear:

~ My cheeks remained matte 

~ Nose and forehead looks a little dewy due to my natural oils forming (but not greasy). 

~ Foundation was still intact on all areas and didn't settle into any lines.

After 7 hours of wear. 

(7pm) After 11 hours of wear: 

~ Starting to feel discomfort on my skin. 

~ The foundation was glowy on my nose and forehead area.

~ The foundation did not settle into any lines however my sun spot was showing. 

I would powder my nose and forehead if i am going to extend the wear of my foundation since i prefer looking matte than glowy. But I guess 11 hours is long enough to have makeup on. I would normally wash off my makeup at this point. But since i didnt have time to put on fresh makeup to meet my boyfriend that night, I thought maybe i could test the staying power of the foundation and see how well it'll last. So i put on some eye makeup and head off to meet my boyfriend.

(9pm) After 13 hours of wear: 

~ Resisting the urge to powder my nose and forehead at the 11 hours mark, i find that my nose and forehead area are shiny. 

~ The foundation were gone on certain areas of my cheeks. 

~ My sun spot on the left cheek was clearly visible. 

~ My right cheek and chin started to itch - probably due to the prolonged wear and also LARGELY due to the rose scent/perfume that I'm allergic and sensitive to. 

I find that I can only use this foundation for short periods of time (less than 7 hours) before my skin starts to itch. :C I love how natural it looked on my skin, but i hated when my skin got irritated after 7 hours of wear.

(12am) After 16 hours of wear: 

~ At the end of the day, my skin looked greasy, especially on my nose, and the foundation has worn off on some areas of both cheeks.

~ The foundation did not claim to be long lasting but i just wanted to test the staying power. I'd say it looks good up to 7-10 hours before it starts to deteriorate and wears off.

THE VERDICT:
❤❤❤ OUT OF 5


I would give higher rating if it
a) Didnt make my skin looked green when i applied 2 layers.
b) Has got no perfume/scent
c) Does not irritate my sensitive skin

I recommend this to anyone with dry to normal skin, not so much to those with sensitive skin.

For reference on how sensitive i am, my skin reacted badly to Boscia brand products even though they claimed to be "ALL NATURAL". My skin was literally omitting heat, peeling and flaking when i used their products.

This foundation is not recommended if you:
1. Have combination / oily skin because this will slip and slide on your face
2. Want full coverage
3. Hate foundations with scents
4. Allergic/Sensitive to scents/perfumes in foundation

XOXO,
Zia Rahman
Beauty Talk

Sephora Friends And Family Sale in Singapore! 13-14 August 2014

Hi beauties!

For the first time ever, I went to Sephora Singapore FRIENDS AND FAMILY SALE! This exclusive event is for friends and families of Sephora employees and by invite only. I tried to Google for Sephora FNF sale here in Singapore but couldn't find anything so I shall be the first to review the Friends and Family Sale!

The sale was very disappointing to be honest. I wanted to replenish my Make Up For Ever HD foundation which I'm running out of but the sale wasn't anything I imagined. It was held at Sephora's head office - A small office space, about the size of a regular classroom, was cordoned off to carry out the sale. Dont be disappointed if you missed the sale. I could do without going to the sale, to be honest. It gave me the small-warehouse/ flea-type kind of sale vibe. There were nothing but piles of previous season's overstocks.

Among some of the brands, besides the Sephora house brand, were Bliss, Burt's Bees, Ole Henriksen, Butter London, Caudalie, Ciate.

P/S: Pardon my chipped nail polish. They were in need of a manicure. :')

The silver eyeshadow palettes and the purple shower sets were 2 for $20. 

The black quads were $10 each. 

The black quads were $10 each. 

The gel liners were $5 each.

The Bliss lip balm was around $6-$10 

Some of the Ole Henriksen products there:

Nail polishes:

Butter London were 2 for $20 

Butter London were 2 for $20 

The Burt's Bees packs came in a variety of lip sets.

HAUL TIME!
I managed to bag these home for my family and friends.

This 6-piece trinkets holiday set was only SGD $10! 

This 24-piece mini set was SGD $20

This 24-piece mini set was SGD $20

I bought things I didn't really need, again. But it's okay, I get to play with my new toys now. Would you like an in depth review on any of the items I bought?

XOXO,
Zia Rahman
Beauty Talk