FOTD: Simply Primped and Polished

This would be one of the rarest times Maquillage Lover puts up an FOTD! 

After doing this makeup I felt it looks simple and yet pretty so I'd like to share this with you.

Japanese make up makes the prettiest sheer color;

it gives an illusion as if you're wearing almost nothing at all but you look so primp and polish with just a light touch of color here and there.

Just the way I like my makeup! Not too over done with shocking colors but not too bare that my eye bags are saying hello to the world!

I made this FOTD last Sunday before going out.

Here's the product lineup:

Shiseido eyelash curler, Taiwan version

Shu Uemura Pro Concealer 

UDPP in Eden

Majolica Majorca Lash Expander Frame Plus

Jill Stuart Jewel Crystal Eyes in Princess Sapphire

Jill Stuart Eye Jelly in Midnight Shine

Jill Stuart lipstick in Baby Coral

Shiseido PN Primalise Gloss

Kiehl's lip balm #1

Jill Stuart Moist Silk Liquid Foundation 

Benefit 10

Jill Stuart Mix Blush in Fresh Apricot

Low End Authentic Shiseido Products and History in Taiwan

In other posts regarding Shiseido products unknown here in the Philippines, some are wary that my Shiseido products are fake but here's a proof it's not fake.

This is taken inside Watson's guerilla style =p 

I've taken a snapshot of Shiseido's de luxe Eau de Carmin on sale for NT$90 from the original price of NT$100!

Surprise surprise, later on I'd find a history of Shiseido in Taiwan!

Shiseido's logo hasn't changed over the years, amazing...

Here are some snapshots of the old Shiseido packaging such as this face powder

Excuse the poor photography- lighting was bad and I'm shooting guerilla style

More Shiseido bottles, doesn't this remind you of my Shiseido de Luxe Eau de Carmin?

That's because this is one of the first few Shiseido de Luxe products! I was surprised to find out it has been around before I was born!

And if you'll check the English words written above it states 'WHOLESALE CHAIN'

which means that Shiseido is primarily a mass cosmetic company and you can get products for wholesale price; sadly Philippines just get the pricey lines so we often think Shiseido is mainly a high end brand. It's sad that we don't get to enjoy the other low end and mid range brands from Shiseido. =(

Here's a close up of Shiseido's de Luxe line, cute bottle! ^.^

There, hope I've put an ease to my dear readers' worries regarding cheap Shiseido products in Taiwan. Don't worry about buying fakes in Taiwan; as long as you're buying from legitimate stores and not from the streets you're safe. 

Also, I purchased my first Shiseido eye lash curler that's made in Taiwan and I've been using it since 2008. It's housed in a simple green box but it's NOT fake. It's made in Taiwan for local distribution; I think this is a great strategy because they could keep the prices really really low if the country produces the products on their own instead of importing in large volumes. I got my Shiseido eye lash curler for NT$100! That's roughly around Php140-Php150 only but I like it better than Shu Uemura because of the sturdy rubber and sturdy heavy metal- heavier than the ones distributed in posh Shiseido counters in the Philippines! 

Mystery Product #2: Shiseido Eau de Carmin de Luxe

 Here's another Shiseido product I can't find much information in the internet

This is called Shiseido Eau de Carmin de Luxe

I bought this myself in Taiwan before, like the Shiseido Acne Lotion, it's also similar to Mario Badescu's drying lotion and it smells similar too. Perhaps this might be an acne treatment too?

I don't know why I snapped this up, but I think it's because of the pretty frosted glass bottle =p

Here's the information at the back.

Shiseido Acne Lotion- Has Anyone Encounter This Product Before?

Last night my mother gave me her bottle of Shiseido Acne Lotion, she forgot where she acquired but

But I think this was acquired when we went to Taiwan since the accompanying instructional paper is in Chinese.

I would like to use this but I don't know any product details on this one, I tried Googling it but nothing is coming out. I think this is one of Shiseido's exclusive products to Taiwan, I saw a lot of Shiseido products unavailable here and it's hard to find information of such products when you Google it in English.

Here's the Chinese version of the bottle label.

I know it says lotion but like most Asian products, they usually refer toners to lotions. I tried it yesterday and it's a strong drying toner actually but the good news is that my pimple inflammations are lessened today. I just might use this for spot applications since it stings my skin.

**********

You know what, this reminds me of Mario Badescu's Drying Lotion since it has the powder on the bottom and liquid on top. It smells medicine-like which is the same with Mario Badescu. 

I also have Shiseido's Eau de Carmin, another product I can't find much info when I Google it in English, I'll post it tomorrow perhaps you gals might be able to help me! ^.^

Graduation Came

At laaast!!! After almost four years of studying at De La Salle University-Manila

Graduation came...

It was a bittersweet moment for all of us

We're happy that we're done and we're ready to embark to the next journey of our lives

We're sad that we won't be seeing each other often.

I'm glad I graduated with my close friend and block mate Abi

I'm sad I didn't graduate with my other block mates and friends (same sentiment with Abi haha)

But at least we got through college together though we're colleges apart.

Fixing my tassel in this pic, I think =p I just had this funny expression haha

When: Feb 6, 2010

Where: PICC

Time: 8am to 11am

Honorable Mention (but my 'badge' can't be seen coz of my long hair) 

P.S. I love Bro. Armin's earring haha, love him for tirelessly shaking our hands and smiling all through out handing diplomas to 900+ graduates and calling us with our nicknames.

Since this is a beauty blog I won't let this pass without a break down of my graduation FOTD:

Jill Stuart Day Care Essence primer

Jill Stuart Moist Silk Liquid Foundation in 202 Ivory

Shu Uemura Pro Concealer 3YR Medium Light

Kanebo Media PO-BI Powder

Majolica Majorca Lash Expander Frame Mascara

Urban Decay Primer Potion

Urban Decay eyeshadow in Ecstasy from Book of Shadows 2

Urban Decay eyeshadow in Sellout from Book of Shadows 2

Jill Stuart Jewel Crystal Eyes eye shadow palette

L'oreal Blush Delice in Fresh Papaya

Shu Uemura Rouge Unlimited in PK308

Shiseido Primalise Gloss in 92

More Hong Kong Beauty Finds

I'd like to share with you girls what I have hoarded from Hong Kong and post the price list for references too, hope it helps those who are going to Hong Kong! ^.^

All these are just trial size I bought from Sasa, most of the time trial sizes lasts me for 3-4 months already

Clinique Moisture Surge HK$32

Clinique Lash Power Mascara HK$22

Clinique Superbalm Moisturizing Gloss HK$25

Ah... My favorite haul! ^.^ MAC and Shu Uemura- two of my favorite brands side by side

Shu Uemura Cleansing Oil HK$389 in Colourmix

MAC 188 brush HK$300

MAC 224 brush HK$230

MAC brush cleaner HK$100

MAC eye shadow goldmine HK$130

Tadaah! MAC's Magic Mirth and Mischief poster, it's just a freebie in MAC counter in Elements Mall

I've been wanting Kiehl's Ultra Facial Moisturizer because of my dry flaky skin

Been using Vaseline Hand and Nail cream, makes my nails very strong so when I want to grow long nails I use this to strengthen my digits

Kiehl's Ultra Facial Moisturizer HK$245 in Colourmix

Vaseline Hand and Nail Cream HK$9 in Wellcome, it's HK$16 in the airport

Lancome's Bi-Facil eye make up remover! I was searching for L'oreal's eye make up remover but I got Lancome instead! ^.^

Lancome Bi-Facil HK$138 in Colourmix

Shiseido eye lash curler from Bonjour, I think HK and Philippine's Shiseido rubber pad is just the same so I'm searching Taiwan's rubber pad which is very very good huhu ='(

Shiseido eye lash curler HK$65 in Bonjour

Freebie! A Marc Jacobs make up pouch for promotion, it's very simple design wise

A formal mascara guard, I've been using a Kamiseta clothes tag as my mascara guard, it works well but I want to try using a real mascara guard too

Kai Mascara Guard HK$29 in Sasa

Mentholatum Acnes Oil Control Film, I love using the facial wash version because it cleared my skin up- permanently! ^.^ I might as well try their oil control film

Mentholatum Acnes Oil Control Film HK$16 each in Bonjour

Tomorrow's post will be the clothes haul I got from Hong Kong ^.^ Can't wait to share it with you girls!

Hong Kong Haul Preview

I'm back! And with me are the hauls I got from Hong Kong.

I primarily love Hong Kong for their super delicious siu ngo or roasted goose; others call it Peking Duck but siu ngo is totally different from duck and there's no direct translation to siu ngo, if you want to taste better Peking Duck just tell them Siu Ngo and they'll give you goose instead of duck, dip it in plum sauce and it's gonna be heaven. I also love La-a po which is salted or daing duck rice in hot pot; the aroma is like heaven! I love eating the burnt rice sticked to the pot because it's the tastiest part of the meal, just poke your chopstick on the pot and mix tutong with the rice simmered in La-a's aroma. La-a tastes the best in winter season because it needs to be dried in a naturally cool temperature. Enough of this food talk I'm getting hungry again!

Don't be fooled though, I'm not rich haha! I know the haul looks crazy but some of it are freebie such as the Lola by Marc Jacobs make up pouch from Spring Magazine- a nice Hong Kong lady who's selling magazines on the streets told me (translation courtesy of my father who didn't teach me to speak Cantonese huhu) a lot of young Hong Kong women are finding magazines with the Marc Jacobs pouch and she just has one copy left. I didn't pick it up. I got this one from the Hong Kong International Airport.

Most of the high end products you see I got it for a bargain; most of it are half the price here in the Philippines. Where in the Philippines would you see boxes of Lancome products sold on the streets? Sasa, Colour Mix and Bonjour does display them on the streets.  I got Lancome eye make up remover, Shu Uemura Cleansing Oil and Kiehl's in Colour Mix.

I love going to Hong Kong Disneyland because it's near and I don't have to walk a lot to enjoy the theme park. Usually I don't buy souvenirs from Hong Kong Disneyland unless it is something useful so I got three adorable hair accessory and a make up pouch that's very sexy (it's in lace!) ^.^

Oh I forgot to include one of my prized possession now, MAC eye shadow in Goldmine, hihi! ^.^ I was looking for this for a long long time I even bought her sister Amber Lights just to soothe my lemming for this one. MAC Philippines doesn't carry Goldmine because it was released as a part of their Limited Edition line but I know it's really not LE and I was very happy Hong Kong carries Goldmine in their regular line. I hauled a bit from MAC because their MAC is cheaper than ours, 187 stippling brush is cheaper by Php600+. Sweet sweet bargain for me ^.^

Majolica Majorca Lash Expander Frame Plus

Here it is! The much anticipated Majolica Majorca Lash Expander Frame Plus mascara is in my paws.

I got the description from Airvony's online shop:

Leaves a never before seen impact!

"Majolica Majorca Lash Expander Frame Plus"

This is the 3rd generation of Majolica Majorca Lash Expander. Lashes are covered in a super lengthening liquid base that gives you 1.5x longer lashes with great intensity joined with a framing eyeliner effect. Its improved formula is formulated with the world’s first jet black fibers and works together with a new coil and comb technology on the brush. This waterproof mascara ensures that you get sky high lashes! Perspiration, oil, tear and water proof.

Length ***
Thickness **
Density **
 

My Review:

The packaging is awesome! It is like a tamed down Jill Stuart but it is very pretty nonetheless. In my experience today the packaging does not get scratches easily so it is a good plus point for me. The spider web pattern is very sophisticated in my opinion. What is very unique about this is the cap or wand, if you would look at the picture below the top of the wand has the Majolica Majorca logo on it and it is indeed majestic.

The wand is a lot like my Etude House 66 Big Eye Vitcara; it’s a comb type of brush which works very well with my small chinky eyes. What’s interesting here is that the formula has small lash-like fibers and you could see it on the comb.

Does it work? Yes it does! The first side I apply is the straight side of the wand to apply the mascara on my lashes then I use the curved side to comb it out, what I notice is that whenever I’m using the curved side, that is the time when the lash-like fibers gets attached to the tip of my lashes and you have to be meticulous in combing it out. This is like hair extensions for your lashes haha! 

Tip: Try to have a clean spoolie on hand so you can clean your lashes up once you're done attaching the fibers. Don't worry! The fibers attach itself very efficiently. 

The formula is liquid like instead of clumpy and clay-like, sometimes you have to wipe the excess formula from the wand but it is natural since this is freshly opened mascara. Upon combing the formula on my lashes, gosh it goes on smoothly and it dries quicker than Etude House 66 Big Eye Vitcara but it gives you ample time to coat and fortify your lashes before it dries so this is not clumpy at all!

My lashes was really lengthened that my problem now is how to shorten it so the formula would not smear on my lids haha! I really have short sparse lashes and this really made my day, I feel like a cute doll with long lashes. If you'll look at the photo above you might think there's not much of a big difference but that's because I used a camera phone for this one and not much detail is captured but in real life this is amazing. I have not encountered any mascara that could brighten up my eyes like this one does. So yes I think I found my Holy Grail. I call this the steroid to my lashes. 

The volumizing power of this one is pretty weak but I am satisfied that it blackens and darkens my lashes; it does plump my lashes up but only to a certain degree but for me it is perfect for a natural everyday look. The curl stays up all day and it won’t budge even if I splashed my face with water.

However, here’s the problem; I usually remove my make-up after taking a hot shower because the steam and warm water melts mascara formulas and this method makes it easier for me to remove it with a make-up remover without having to tug my skin. In this case, it is very hard to remove even after a warm bath. I have to use my Etude House mascara remover which I suspect has a blend of cleansing oil so I think that the solution to a painless way to remove this is using cleansing oil. The down side is I do not like it when the oil gets into my eyes and emulsifies because it turns milky white, it does not sting my eyes but I rinse it immediately still to prevent harm to my eyes.

On the picture above, you'll see that I have highlighted the 320 yuan or NT$320 because that is just how much it costs in Taiwan. I firmly believe I should not pay so much if I am going to have a drugstore brand imported so yup I got it for a bargain. Another thing I would like to explain in the picture is the Chinese label of the product. On the left we have the Japanese label and instructions on how to use the wand and on the right we have the Chinese version of it, again, I find this very consumer friendly for the Taiwanese market. Here in the Philippines we also have this especially on imported food products with non-English labels on it, only we label it in English. 

Yesterday I was really excited to get my Majolica Majorca and I tried it, I took videos of it and captured it in my laptop so I can capture the frames and make it into pictures but the quality isn’t really the same when I’m using Windows as opposed to the times I was using Mac so I got frustrated and I asked my boyfriend if he could bring his Nikon DSLR along today so I can take some photos. I have a SLR but it is an analog one, it takes great photos and the color is very vivid but it is quite impractical to shoot, develop the photos and scan it into the computer haha.

I was trigger happy so took a lot of photos and here's the last photo of the MM mascara. Thanks to my boyfriend who also took a couple of shots! =) 

The Shiseido Majolica Majorca Haul!

My Genders professor dismissed us early so I was really excited to rush to Wang Lai's Mart. I was supposed to pick up my Majolica Majorca tomorrow Tuesday but since I was given the opportunity to get it today, I seized the day!

The weather is really cool and the breeze is just refreshing tonight so my boyfriend and I went to Wang Lai Mart instead of waiting tomorrow.

I got the two Lash Expander Frame Plus for Php 650 and the Honey Pump Gloss (Php 250) is a freebie! Thanks so much to Ms. Airvony! =) I did not really expect to have another freebie since she gave me a lot of freebies on my last BB cream purchase ^.^

I'll be making a review on the much coveted mascara tomorrow and we'll see how it works for my lashes and in our humid Philippine weather. For now I have to rush and study Michel Foucault's works on Power, I have a quiz tomorrow! ^.^

P.S. The mascara costs a lot cheaper than sellers who sell it at Php900+ but I guarantee you this is authentic! =) It just costs NT$320 in Watsons Taiwan.

My BRTC BB Cream bought from Taiwan is NOT fake (picture heavy)

Recently I read an online shop in Multiply saying that we should be warned about fake BB creams from Taiwan because BB creams come from Korea and not Taiwan. I'd like to commend the seller for putting out a public notice because it is hard to know these days if your beauty product is real or not especially if the price is very low (a good example is Mac Cosmetics). 

However, I'd like to clear out that my Php900 BRTC BB Cream I bought from my suki seller based in Taiwan is NOT fake. BB creams can be bought in almost all Asian market and it is imported from Korea. This is the link of BRTC Taiwan's website and it will show you exactly the same tube I have: http://www.brtc.com.tw/html/front/bin/ptdetail.phtml?Part=ProtectionLine04&PreView=1 

Honestly, right now if you go to www.brtc.com.tw the server is down But luckily I bookmarked the link so it still goes to the page where I found my BB Cream. 

And I found another beauty blog by Ms. Jamilla and she has a photo of her BRTC BB cream box with the "Premium Quality" label: http://www.makeupforprofessionalasianwomen.com/2009/01/legere-white-multi-bb-and-brtc.html 

special thanks to Ms. Jamilla for allowing me to post the link to her blog article! =) 

Here at home my family watches Taiwanese channels and often I'd stumble upon shows advertising BB creams and the top two of the most popular and most advertised are BRTC and L'egere. 

Another proof that my BB Cream is not fake is that I've been using it since August everyday and my skin has never been healthier than ever. When I went to Hongkong my father bought me pure crushed pearls mixed along with other Chinese herbal medicine to flush out the toxins in my weakened liver that causes my unhealthy complexion and I always had pimples all over. I drank it and it became effective until my body got used to it and I broke out again. 

However when I combined the medicine with BRTC BB cream, the BB cream actually helped my skin become healthy again and it's more effective than the expensive crushed pearls I drink everyday. This quickly dries up my pimples and help maintain it that way. I still have small pimples but it goes away in one day or two.

here's an actual photo of my BB Cream 

and yes it has the "Premium Quality" label printed on the box

The label written on the back of the tube

When I went to Taiwan, I found imported products are posted with a sticker with Chinese characters imprinted on them because most Taiwanese cannot read foreign languages such as the Korean language; I find this very consumer friendly for the Taiwanese market and again it doesn't entail that this is fake. Later on I'll show you some other products I've personally bought in Taiwan that are super cheap and has Chinese labels too.

I peeled the sticker off to show that beneath the Chinese characters are Korean characters so you don't have to worry if it's fake or not.

The list of ingredients are written on the sides:

Here are my other Taiwan goodies that are rock bottom prices but are authentic:

Elizabeth Arden Green Tea 100ml perfume and a free clutch bag (and green tea colored gloves but I lost it) all for NT$500+

A separate product I bought is the Elizabeth Arden Green Tea 500ml Shower Gel

I'll admit the clutch bag is made in China but it's not fake

I think we don't have this Elizabeth Arden shower gel here in the Philippines in this size, we only have the small trial sizes but this is also real and it costs me around NT$ 100-200 only

Again, this has the Chinese label in order for Taiwanese to understand the description of the product written in foreign languages

Here we could see certain labels that I think I myself wouldn't doubt if this is authentic or not.

Another bargain I got from Taiwan is this authentic Shiseido eye lash curler which I only bought for NT$150

My curler has a different packaging and it is made in Taiwan for the Taiwan market. I went to Shiseido in Rockwell and I saw the exact same thing, the difference is that the packaging here in the Philippines is much more fancy and curlers are much more thin; the metal is thinner compared to what I own.

Where do I buy all of these bargains? At Jmart; I found it in a quiet city away from Taipei where my aunt lives for more than 10 years already and she took me there and I went crazy looking at all the products because of it's marked down prices. Jmart is located in a wet market in the morning and it transforms into a night market in the evening.

Sure if you'll check mall prices you'll see more expensive prices for these products but in Jmart, I think they sell the excess products unsold at malls.

I bought this at Watson's in Taipei 101 Tower and it just costs NT$300+ as opposed to the Philippine mall price that could go at Php900+

So there you go, a lot of beauty products imported in Taiwan are really cheap compared to other Asian counties, I recently ordered Majolica Majorca in Taiwan and if you'll check the Majolica Majorca Taiwan website it shows that it just costs NT$320 but it doesn't mean it's fake just because Japan sells it for a higher price.

Hope this helps you re-think about cheap Taiwan beauty products. When we think of beauty products in the Asian Market, we think about Hongkong, Japan, Singapore and Korea but we don't usually think Taiwan sells products way cheaper but for me that's the beauty of the Taiwanese market; you don't have much competition so when you enter a beauty store, you can shop in peace and you can go wild not worrying if the product you're thinking to buy will go out of stock once you take a step out of the shop.