Trade Packages and a Love Package Received

In the last couple of days, I received two packages that in exchange for items I sent out.

The first one that I got was a trade that I worked out for the Physician's Formula Happy Booster Blush that I had on blog sale. I honestly didn't know what I wanted so I asked her to just send me anything. What I received was the NYX Runway Collection 10 Color Eyeshadow Palette in Champagne & Caviar.

It is a gorgeous neutral palette. I do have UD Naked Palette but this is quite different from the Naked Palette. The colors in the Naked palette run on the warm side and the colors in this palette are on the cool side, which actually suits my skin tone better. I've already used it a couple of times and really like it. I'll post an EOTD soon. Thank you so much Alvira for doing the trade and I hope that my package arrives there soon!

About a month or so ago, I had bought the Borghese brush set from Costco. Winnie from All Styled Up was checking her Costco in Canada and couldn't find it. I offered to pick up a set for her and told her that instead of her paying for it, we could work out a trade. Of course again, I had no real preference for items although I did ask her if there were Canadian products that I couldn't easily get. I already have a Lise Watier concealer wheel so I didn't need that. I think that I gave poor Winnie a hard time by not having any preferences. The package that she sent me was sooo awesome! I had to take it two shots.

The first picture is all MAC products. I love MAC and can't wait to try these out. There's even a MAC brush! What is in the contact lens cases are pigments! Contact lens cases are really convenient for storing products. I use it to carry a glob of cream concealer.

The second picture has a beautiful jewelry set, two eyeshadow pans from Annabelle Studio, mini Kiehl's Line Reducing Concentrate (I've been wanting to try something else from Kiehl's so this is perfect!), Organic Wear mascara and two items from Quo, which I have never heard of before. One is a powder atomizer bottle. It is so cute! The other is Summer Fantasy Palette, which is really gorgeous. Even the casing is beautiful with crystal rhinestones set in the top of the lid. I can't wait to try this palette out. Everything came inside the pretty floral organza bag.

I was fortunate to have met Winnie through another wonderful blogger, Brianna of The Sungirl Says. Thank you Winnie for the awesome trade. You truly spoiled me.

I also received a love package from Sheila of Maddy Loves. Please check out her blog if you can. She has great reviews and is just a sweet person. (She is also having a giveaway, which will end in 3 days.) Sheila was the coordinator for the 2010 Blogger Secret Santa exchange which I participated in. I know how challenging it can be to coordinate something like this, especially if someone doesn't follow through. I sent her some small as a thank you for doing such an awesome job. In turn, she sent me a thank you package!

Masks! I love masks although I probably don't use it as often as I should. Two minis of Biotherm White Detox , one a concentrate and the other a corrective makeup base. Paul and Joe lipstick in a beautiful shade. I haven't tried anything from Paul and Joe yet so this is really exciting. ZA sunscreen, which she says isn't drying to her skin. I used to buy ZA skincare a long time ago and really, really loved it. Unfortunately, it's not being sold here any more, which is very disappointing to me. Lastly, 5 Hello Kitty lollipops, yes there were 5 but I ate one already. It's yummy!!! Thank you Sheila for the unexpected and super wonderful package. I love everything and am so honored. You are truly a wonderful friend.

*Kat*

Gift Review: Nanoce BB Moist Cream

My friends were in Japan about a month ago and brought back the Nanoce BB Moist Cream in Healthy Ochre for me. Nic Nic had been raving about this BB cream and I was certainly curious about it.

Healthy Ochre is the darker of the two colors that are available.

Nanoce applied to half face

Nanoce applied to whole face

Face makeup fully done

After 12 hours of wear, only nose touched up by powder

When I first opened my package (it was fully sealed), my first thought was that the tube isn't fully filled. A lot of air came out when I tried to squeeze the product out.  It is a 1.4 oz/40 g tube. It comes out rather thickly but applies nicely. Some people have complained about the scent but I think that it's okay. It reminds me a bit of Noxema cream (really aging myself here). It mentally makes me feel that it's sanitizing. The scent dissipates almost immediately. It is quite moisturizing and I feel that I have to set it with powder. I use Guerlain Meteorite Pearls. The coverage is quite good and lasting power is good as well. I think that it does fade a bit but I know that I'm asking a lot to have foundations last 12 hours or longer. I think that the color match is a good one for me. It does oxidise ever so slightly.

In comparison with Hada Labo BB Moist Cream in Natural Ochre, I find both BB creams to be very, very similar.

The Hada Labo cream is does not come out quite as thick as the Nanoce but I think that despite it being less thick, it does cover better than Nanoce. I also think that Hada Labo is a slight bit pink whereas Nanoce is slightly more yellow. After 12 hours of wear, Hada Labo holds up better than Nanoce. I really like both BB creams a lot. If I had to rate them, then I would say that Hada Labo is #1 and Nanoce is #2. It is really a close call though and I'm happy using either one.

*Kat*

Tag: 13 Questions

I was tagged by Nic Nic of bang bang she shoots to do this way back in May. I'm finally getting around to doing it.

1. What do you order at Starbucks?

I don't usually go to Starbucks but if I do go, then I always order a cafe mocha, either hot or cold.

2. What's one thing in your closet that you can't live without?

Jeans. I wear jeans to work everyday and am usually wearing them on the weekends too.

3. What's one thing that most people don't know about you?

People are always surprised that I've been into JPop since my jr. high school years and that's a really long time! This also brings up that people are surprised that I am as old as I am. I'm lucky that I don't look my age...yet...

4. What's one thing that you want to do before you die?

I've never really thought about it. Maybe to be able to travel to Japan at least once a year.

5. What's one food that you can't live without?

I would have to say chicken. I love chicken. I don't care too much for meats and seafood.

6. What's one quote that you live your life by?

Treat others as you would want others to treat you.

7. What do you like and dislike about the youtube community?

I love being able to watch beauty bloggers awesome tutorials. I also love being able to see a lot of videos of variety shows that I wouldn’t normally be able to see. What I dislike about the youtube community is how there are some really rude people out there who make terrible comments on the beauty blogger videos. If you can’t say anything nice, then don’t say anything. I also can’t understand why they are watching those videos if they don’t like the person. We each have the choice of not tuning in to something we don’t like.

8. What's your number 1 song on itunes?

I don't have any music on itunes.

9. What kind of style would you describe yourself as having?

Casual-sweet/romantic. It's kind of hard to describe but I do like bling, bows, lace, frills, ruffles.

10. What is your favorite number?

I don't really have a favorite number that I can think of.

11. Two hobbies?

Card making--by using rubberstamps and die cuts. Sewing, although I really haven't done much sewing recently. I used to sew a lot because it was the only way that I could have clothes that fit me properly. Now that I've.....uhhhhh......prospered, clothes fit me much better. In many ways I like it but I do miss the petite me.

12. Two pet peeves?

The lack of common courtesy nowadays.
Long lines.

13. Your guilty pleasure?

Eating dark chocolate.

Thank you for tagging me to do this Nic Nic! It was fun and made me reflect and think about myself a bit. I tag anyone who is interested in doing this.

*Kat*

Purchase Review: MAC Semi Precious and a New Kat

As most of you are aware, I'm supposed to be on a "no buy, use my stash" mode. I originally wasn't impressed by the pictures that I saw of the MAC Semi Precious collection. That is until I saw Feeling Flush Mineralize Blush. I thought that it was so pretty that I had to have it. I also ended up buying two brushes from the collection, #234, which is a split fibre blending brush and #128 which is a split fibre cheek brush.

According to the MAC website, the #234  is "Specifically designed to deliver two unique results for eyes; the natural goat hair in this split fibre picks up & applies powders & pigments, while the synthetic fibres blend colour for professional quality results" and the 128 is "Designed for exceptional Blush application, this split fibre brush delivers a soft, diffused look with its unique combination of natural & synthetic fibers." I thought that I'd use the cheek brush to lightly appy highlights to my cheekbones. The 234 hasn't worked out as I'd like but sometimes it takes me a while to get used to a new brush. We'll see what happens. I'll probably be using these as part of my Brush of the Month collection but we shall see. (That reminds me, I still have to do my June Brush of the Month post.)

Feeling Flush is a sweet pink color, which I'm really loving. I forgot just how pigmented the mineralize powders can be so my first application was a bit of a disaster as I ended up looking like I had clown cheeks.  The next time I applied it, I used a much lighter application and it was perfect. I used the 187 duo fibre brush to apply the blush.

I paired it with Chanel Rouge Coco Shine in Aventure and I think that the combination matched very well.

On Friday, I finally went to get my hair cut. I was thinking of going with a "boy" cut (think Emma Watson) but my hairstylist nearly had a heart attack. I told her that isn't it usual that for older women, shorter hair is better but she didn't like it for me. I then showed her a picture of a shoulder length cut and she really liked it and said that it would match me well.

This is probably the longest that I have ever had my hair. I had grown up with short hair. For some reason, all the hairstylists liked to cut my hair really short which, at that time, I hated because it made me look like a pixie. That's why it was all the more surprising that I thought about doing a boy cut. Unfortunately with my hair being this long, it had gotten brittle, dry and had major heat styling damage. I also have fine hair so the longer it gets, the thinner and stringier it looks.

With this shorter cut, my hair looks fuller and heathier. I think that it probably makes me look older but the first thing that my husband said is that I look younger. Other people have said it as well. I saw Mai yesterday and she really likes my new hairstyle too.

I really was apprehensive as I liked having it long because I felt that it made me look younger. I'm glad that I finally made the decision to cut my hair shorter.

*Kat*

Purchase Review: Magnetic Freestyle Palette

I wanted to do this post last night but I fell asleep before I could do the post.

I had been looking at a couple of different palettes for a while now--Z Palette and Uni Palette--and while they look like they are really good quality, I wasn't willing to spend as much as they cost. I'm really not too particular about how the palettes look--honestly, I was using an empty Altoid tin for a while and was actually considering doing some decorative work on it instead of buying a palette. I also know that you can pull out the inserts in the MAC palettes the small palette is a little too small and the larger palette is bigger than I wanted.

My search led me to Bobcosmetics on ebay. They sell a magnetic freestyle palette, which is 15 cm long and 10 cm wide (approximately 5.9 inches long and 3.9 inches wide). This is the listing that I found and decided to try and purchase. I was really excited because the package arrived yesterday after I placed my order on July 1st.

I have never liked the bulkiness of Urban Decay's Book of Shadows III and found myself rarely using the shadows. I really wanted to depot it and get rid of the bulky packaging. Here is the size differential between the shadow drawer and the freestyle palette.

I have read on a few blogs how people really like the latch system on the Uni Palette. Since I don't have a Uni Palette, nor have I seen it in person, I can't give a comparison review on it but the latch system on this freestyle palette is your typical snap shut latch. It's not ridiculously tight and perhaps it might be a little on the loose side. We'll have to see how well it continues to perform over time but it's fine for now and isn't so loose that it will unsnap by itself.

It was actually my first time to depot anything so I was a little worried, especially since the Urban Decay shadows are soft. Luckily, it's in a cardboard drawer and was relatively easy to pop out. I did have a few mishaps, as you can see. I worked my way from right to left so the last two rows of shadows look pretty good. Practice helps to make perfect.

Since I was on a roll, I also depotted my Benefit Bella Bamba blush as I didn't like the deep cardboard box that it came in. After I depotted my pans, I typed names on labels and put those on the bottom of the pans. I also typed up a color chart, which I then cut down and laminated. By doing this chart, I don't have to turn the pans upside down to see what color it is. It's more for my own convenience than anything else. For now, I have it taped to the lid of the pan but I may just lay it over the shadows. You know how most eyeshadows/blushes come with a plastic cover over it when you first buy it? I usually keep mine and keep my palette covered with it.

Overall, I'm really happy with this freestyle palette. It was only $10.00 plus $2.50 shipping and handling. I am considering picking up a few more. Perhaps the only thing that I personally don't like about having depotted the shadows, is that there is nothing separating the shadows from each other. When I first put it in, I had it all right next to each other but ended up putting some space in between each pan. Some people may not like the fact that it has no mirror on the lid but I actually prefer that it doesn't have one. I usually don't use my palette mirrors and it would just add more weight to it.

Back to work for me. I snuck on using my Company's computer to do this post.  Hehe!
I hope that you're all having a wonderful week so far.

*Kat*

Happy 4th of July! Red, White & Blue EOTD

Happy 4th to everyone out there!

I don't really consider myself to be patriotic but I decided to get into the spirit of things and do a red, white and blue (toned down) EOTD.

Products used:

Urban Decay Primer Potion, Sin
Sephora Color Play Palette
K-Palette Real Lasting Eyeliner

I was looking through my regular lineup of eyeshadow palettes and realized that I didn't have any that had a red color to it. That's when I remembered that I have this Sephora palette and went searching for it. I think that reds are difficult to wear in that you need to find the right shade for your skin tone so that it won't look like you have a bad eye irritation. After priming with Sin, I applied color #1 to my entire eyelid from crease to browbone. I then combined the two #2 colors and applied it to the inner half of my eyelid. Color #3 was applied to the outer half of my eyelid. Color #4 was applied to the middle of the eyelid. I used color #5 to line the upper lashline and in the outer corner of the upper eyelid and also applied it in the outer "V" for more eye definition. I also applied a little to the outer corner of the lower lashline. Lined upper lashline and outer corner of lower lashline with K-Palette eyeliner. I then patted on color #3 onto eyeliner on lower lashline to soften it. I also reapplied color #5 to outer "V" over the flicked up eyeliner to smudge out any harsh lines.

I think that these colors worked out well, especially the red color in that my eyelid doesn't look irritated. In the pictures, the color looks a lot lighter than in person.

Sorry, I'm realizing that all of my EOTDs look similar. It must be rather boring to see.

As a side note, I went to Sephora today to check out Benefit for a fellow blogger (mainly because I was curious). It's not in stock yet but there were a couple of workers from Benefit there. They were trying to get me to try out their creaseless cream eyeshadow and I told them that I don't often use cream eyeshadows because I use a stretch fiber to make my eyelids double. They were very surprised that I was using anything and had me close my eyes while they examined my eyelids carefully. I'm sure that there were customers walking by who were wondering what we were doing. LOL!

I hope that everyone has a wonderful week!

*Kat*

Blog Sale Updated

I just updated the blog sale page here or you can click on the blog sale page link to the right, under Pages.

Thanks for looking!

*Kat*