Bibir - A Review on Syed Faizal's First Product

First let me introduce who Syed Faizal is. He is a renowned make-up artist who has done many magazine spreads and has beautified many brides-to-be, including myself. I love his touch. He is known for his amazing glowy make-up for brides and experimental ones for magazine spreads. Based on my own experience, I would recommend him again and again to future brides. 

When I found out he was coming out with his own product, I knew I had to have them. His first product features 6 matte liquid lip color and he featured various local stylists/celebrities/socialite for his campaign. They are priced at RM 40 per piece and if you buy 3, there's free postage for you. 

He describes his first collection as playful pop colors and each are quite pigmented. They should feel weightless and waterproof. Their Instagram Page also features steps on how to use their lip color in 3 easy steps; prep, line and fill in.

As their team was having a free postage promotion for a purchase of three lip color, I decided to get three (it's pretty easy to convince me. Sheesh)

Here are my chosen colors:

Roseluck, Sparklesnap, Firecracker (also shown is the packaging it came with. Reminds me of Sephora)

                                      

Roseluck is described as a deep red while Sparklesnap is more of an orange color. Now I did not want to purchase Firecracker at first but since Syed Faizal himself said I could pull off the color, I decided to get it. Firecracker is a deep brown color.

Roseluck

Sparklesnap

Firecracker

The first time I tried it on, I could see all the lines on my lips. Hence the first step is VERY important. Always remember to prep your lips with lip balm and avoid rubbing your lips together after application since it is matte, it is not the same as wearing normal lipstick. As for the waterproof and being lightweight, they indeed lived up to that. In fact, it is hard to take it off! I had to use oil cleanser to clean it off. 

Overall I would recommend this brand as it is long lasting (but you need to reapply after eating, of course). Syed Faizal is coming out with a range of nude colors next. Count me in! 

NARS x Steven Klein Despair Blusher Palette

Now, I was really anxious about the NARS x Steven Klein collection. On my last trip to KLCC I did enquire but was told that it will only be available in November. Bummer. Yes, I gave birth the next day. I was however, fortunate that Adam was willing to get me what I wanted. I chose the despair blusher palette because I have a limited array of blusher in my collection, when compared to my eyeshadow collection. Plus, since I can't be there personally to look at the collection, I decided to limit my purchase to only one item. 

What also attracted me to the collection is the packaging. I am a HUGE sucker for packaging. What's interesting is that the graphic on the box is transferred to the palette box itself too. Love it. 

The palette has 4 colors, Nico (permanent color), Savage, Esoteric and Ferocious, and comes with a traveled-size kabuki brush. The brush seems a bit hard, however I haven't gotten a chance to really use the brush with the product itself. I might change my mind once I've tried putting the blushers on with it. 

Nico (beige), Savage (coral pink), Esoteric (tangerine), Ferocious (plum)

Swatched! (From left: Nico, Savage, Esoteric & Ferocious)

When swatched, I feel like I would be using Esoteric and Ferocious (i like plum blushers although I need to be careful so that I don't look like I have bruises) more than the others. Perhaps if I were to go for a more Kawaii look, Savage would work pretty well. Nico would work well as a highlighter for me. Not that fair for it to work as a blusher on me, IMO. All colors are pigmented, hence the palette would definitely go a long way. Im eyeing on the individual eyeshadows, Stud (pewter bronze) and Never Too late (olive with gold shimmer) next if they are still available when I finish my confinement period. 

I can't wait to try them out, really. I guess I'll have to wait for my doctor's appointment next week. When in confinement, even the trip to the doctor seems exciting, really. 

NARS eyeshadow duo in Kalahari

I love Nars BUT because I don't want to go to Pavilion just because, hence my Nars collection is pretty small and all of them were brought in by my in laws whenever they come back from the States. So, I was pretty excited when I spotted Nars in KLCC recently. Made up my mind that I would want to buy something. ANYTHING! 

After feasting my eyes on what was offered, I decided to get some eyeshadow. I told the SA I needed something more neutral; something that I can use on an everyday basis. He suggested the Kalahari duo eyeshadow and started putting them on me. Of course I bought them straight away. They look pretty wearable everyday for sure. 

I managed to wear them today for my baby shower. Also used my new EcoTools Eye Enhancing Duo set which were so easy to use because they came with a manual! How awesome is that. 

Amazing color 

Dual ended brush

Easy to follow instructions (I achieved my look today using the instructions)

Love the look I created today for our usual weekend outing (please ignore the messy background. Yeah room is back to being chaotic with the new dressing table) .

Face: BB cream by The Face Shop; Clinique Chubby Stick Sculpting Contour

Brows : MAC brow pencil in Brunette; Pro Longwear Brow set in Toasted Blonde

Blusher: NARS Violet Atom

Highlighter: Benefit Watt's Up

Lips: Lip Pencil in Etcetera ; MAC Sheen Supreme lipstick

See Adam? I do wear everything that I have. 

Anything from NARS that is a must to have? I do want to try their foundation next! Lets just hope Adam would bring me to KLCC just one more time before I pop. 

Squeeky Clean

If you know me, you would know I don't have just ONE cleanser. If you don't know me, yes I love buying cleanser. Due to my curiosity, I have tried quite a number of cleanser but there are only a couple of cleansers that I do repurchase and when I repurchase, it would only mean that it truly works for me 

Number 1 in my list is the Josie Maran Oil Cleanser. Love the smell and it does its task. There's a few bad reviews on this product but I find it good as it it doesn't strip off all of the natural moisture off my face and I know this because my skin feels supple after using it instead of the usual dry effect of any other cleanser. Plus, it is 100% made with organ oil. Good stuff for sure. 

The key is to know how to use it. I always warm the oil with my palm and then proceed to smooth the oil over my dry face. Next, I wet my skin and massage the cleanser in. It will automatically emulsify into a some kind of creamy milk. Final step, rinse and done! 

Number 2 is the Angels on Bare Skin by Lush. I'm pretty sure it is my 3rd jar (I bought 2 jars and 1 jar was given to me as my birthday gift this year. YIPEE!) and I make sure I don't run out of it. We don't have lush here but there's a lot of IG accounts that do preorders regularly. 

The Angels on Bare Skin cleanser is very different from the Josie Maran cleansing oil. Its more clay like. I mainly love it due to its mild exfoliation. I can't scrub often due to my dry and sensitive skin, hence this was naturally a good choice. Totally gave me that everyday glow. Judging from the 3rd jar purchase, I know for sure I won't stop purchasing this product (looking forward to buy my 4th jar in HK!) . 

To be frank, Angels on Bare Skin is not the only product that I love from Lush. I will share my favourite toner and moisturiser from Lush in future entry. Yes, I agree. Lush should really open a store here! 

Wheres the Glow?

Once you go into the second trimester, everyone would be telling you that you would have the 'glow'. Scientifically it is due to you producing more blood and such. Anyway, have you seen the movie 'what to expect when you are expecting'? If you have, then you would know that not all mommies-to-be would have the glow. Honestly when I had my first pregnancy, I don't have any glow. You could spot my tired face a mile away. Heck, someone even guessed I was pregnant judging from my tired face. 

Thankfully, I think I do have the glow in this pregnancy from the comments people often gave me over and over again. However, to me, it really boils down on how well you take care of yourself. Your skin probably needs more attention with the hormonal changes and all.

What's important is proper cleansing, toning, and moisturising

In this post, I would like to share my secret to a glowing skin. My favourite mai'amy serum. I first stumbled upon it when I started following this girl on instagram and she was one of the seller for the brand. I decided to try 2 bottles of diamond serum first, following a recommendation from her .

It worked like a charm. Never turning back. 

No glow you say? I create my own 'glow' thank you very much. Currently I am using the stem cell serum from the same brand and I honestly like it better than diamond serum. 

By the way, there's also a myth saying that when you are pregnant with a baby girl, it will drain out your natural glow and the opposite happens when you are pregnant with a baby boy. A theory that I can't really prove but hey, thanks for the 'glow' BabyIJ 

I ll be sharing my favourite cleansing products in the future. Can't wait to share but make sure you leave some for me when I go to Sephora!