I wish...

Have you ever felt sad that a big part of your makeup collections would not be used up and your favorite products might be wasted? How often do you use up a single powder, and compare to how many you have? Sigh...I wish, If just no makeup would ever expire...

Tuesday, March 6, 2012

Why Did Everyone Rave About It (Them) -- I. Makeups

One of the reasons we like reading beauty blogs and watching Youtube videos is that we want to find ideas about purchasing some products, or using some products so we will not waste our money on useless things. I truly want to follow the hype of all the stuff out there, and I wish they all work like wonders on me as well. Unfortunately, something are swore by everyone else, to me they are waste of money.
I rarely return beauty products unless they just won't work on my skin, no matter how many different ways I have tried to use them. Believe me I tried so hard to love what many others loved, but I could not figure out how. What I have learned so far is that always try before you buy. If you cannot get a sample, get a travel sized one especially for high-end products. 
(A SNEAK PEAK OF Part I & II)
A product doesn't work on me DOES NOT mean it is a bad product. I haven't seen any one beauty item that worked on all people whoever bought it, and all of them loved it to death. If you did, please let me know, it must be a hell amazing thing on planet. You can read thousands of wonderful reviews about something, but none of them is a guarantee to you that you can get the same good results.

Here are some popular products I had high expectations but was disappointed after using:

  • MAKEUPS
MAC Face and Body Foundation


When I bought this foundation, I was really expecting it to be my next favorite foundation all time. (especially Pixiwoo-one of my fa youtubers loves this) Unfortunately, I really could not find one thing about it I enjoyed, well, besides the fact that it is a product from MAC... -_-! Anyway, MAC claims that the Face and Body Foundation is  
A water-based, water-resistant foundation that provides long-lasting, natural coverage for face and/or body. Ideal for all skin types. Face and Body Foundation provides sheer, natural looking coverage in an easy to blend, water-resistant formula. The long-lasting formula is available in a wide range of colours and contains several emollients to help moisturize and condition the skin. It delivers professional looking results that meet the exacting standards of beauty photography and is ideal for perfecting the face and body.
When you read MAC's description of this foundation, don't you think it is such a nice product that is not oil-based, is water-resistant, long-lasting, and gives a natural but perfect finished look? I have combination skin with oily t-zones and chin area. I have been wanting to try a water-based foundation because they will not add extra oil to my face. That being said, after the first time using it, I broke out so badly around my chins and my forehead, worse than all my other foundations with only one use. Very unexpected. Also, the finish is too dewy to look natural. My face just looked like "wet" all over, even after I tried to powder it down.
I didn't expect this to be a full coverage foundation when I bought it. However, there was nearly NONE coverage after the first layer. I tried to build up, the coverage was still so sheer that even a tinted moisturizer might have better coverage. At the same time, the more layers I applied, the more dewy my face looked. Odd enough, this water-based foundation made me feel that my face could not breath through it.
I managed to keep it on for a full day when I first used it. Although I did not feel comfortable with it on my face for that long, I want to see the lasting power and oil control capability. First, it does not control much oil through out the day. The dewiness already gave me a oily feeling at the beginning anyway. Then, the lasting power I would say just like my other foundations, nothing better. Since I could barely see its coverage, It was kind of hard to tell whether it faded or how much it faded.
I gave a second chance to this foundation the next day, the results were the same for both days. I tried to apply with my fingers, a brush, and a beautyblender, did not notice any difference. I did not bother to try the third time because I just simply hate the way it feels and looks on my face.
Sadly, I returned to the store at the end.

I would not say the claim MAC stated about the Face and Body Foundation was false. For those who have perfect skin, and skin type is from dry to normal, this foundation could have worked perfect for them. If the "natural" looking in the claim means that you can only see the real natural skin after apply it, then I guess my face looked natural too because I had a hard time to cover any blemish. How could that not be natural? One thing I can guarantee you is that you will never have to worry about looking cakey or too matte with this foundation.

This foundation retails for $33.00 for 120ml/4oz. The size is pretty good size for the price. You only have 13 different shades to choose from, 7 cool toned and 6 neutral toned. If you have yellow undertones, then go with the cool toned colors (C1-C7). Otherwise, go with the neutral-toned ones (N1-N3, N5, N7 & N9). Because the sheer coverage, the colors don't show up too much. I think that's why there is not a big selection of colors compare to other MAC foundations.

Disappointment Level: 5/5

Revlon Lip Butters ($6-$8 various in drugstores)


Almost everyone I came across was talking about the Revlon Lip Butters since Christmas. How could that make me not curious about them? The first mistake I made was that I bought too many before even tried any. I am not saying the Revlon lip Butters are bad products at all. I actually like them, but I don't see how extraordinary they are in comparison with many other similar products which I think are just as good as the Lip Butters, or even better.
Revlon Lip Butters are supposed to be tinted lip balms, that means they not only moisturize the lips but also give colors to the lips. On the moisturizing side, the Lip Butters are okay, not anything special. The moisture does not last very long, couple hours the most. Talking about the "tint" of Lip Butters, Revlon did a pretty nice job on that. As you can see from the swatches, the color pigmentations can be seen as sheer lipsticks with a glossy finish. The texture is very creamy and soft, easy to glide on lips.
Here is why I was disappointed: if you consider the Lip Butters "lip balms", I did not get long-lasting moisturization when I used them. They actually made my lips a bit drier than earlier after they were worn off (The Lip Butters are no way comparable to my other favorite lip balms, i.e. Burt's Bees Lip Balm, Rosebud Lip Balm, Dior Addict Lip Treatment, Korres Lip Butters, etc.). If you consider the Lip Butters as "moisturizing lipsticks", the color payoffs are not considered the best in the market, some BabyLips from Maybelline even have more intense color payoffs.
I think the packaging is cute, and I also like that I can actually see the color of each Lip Butter from the top of the lid without taking it off. There is one problem about the packaging. Because the texture of the product is very soft and creamy, when I used it I noticedthe top surface of the actual lip stick could be easily press down more than I wanted (some excess product was smashed at the tip a bit). So when I twisted back up, the product would touch the side of the tube, make it a little bit messy. This is minor  problem, just be careful not pressing too hard when you put on your lips directly from the tube. I have to say that we all have those days when we don't want to wear bold colors lipsticks, the Revlon Lip Butters are good choices for that.
I did not return what I bought because I do not think they are bad products at all. I am just not overwhelmed like many others by their qualities.

It's not hard to find a really good tinted lip balm, or moisturizing lip sticks whichever you prefer, from other brands. It really depends on what you are looking for more in a lipstick, better pigmentation, better moisturization, longer lasting, or more creamy texture.
I personally do not mind have the lip balms and lipsticks separately, as long as they do their own job nicely. It is still great to have something like the Revlon Lip Butters combine the two tasks into one. If you want to try them, don't buy too many the first time. Since they will be in the market for a while, no need to rush out and get one.

I think there will be more and more high quality tinted lip balms or moisturizing lipsticks coming out from all different brands. Liquid lipsticks and Lipstick pencils are trends too, such as MAC kissable liquid lipsticks, Chanel liquid lipsticks, YSL liquid lipsticks, Inglot lipstick pencils, Tarte lip surgeon, Lip Fusion Lip Pencils, NYX Jumbo Lip Pencils, and Buxom Big and Healthy Lips pencils, they are all lovely products to try out.

Disappointment Level: 3/5


NARS Blushes


NARS is a high-end brand that has a lot of amazing stuff. Her powder blushes are one of the them almost everyone has been raving about. I included them not because I didn't like them, it's because for the money I would not want to choose them over some other blushes I love.

Starting from the packaging, it is not the type I like since it gets dirty so easily. The material can prevent the product from sliding out of you hands, but at the same time it tends to grab powders and make the case look like a mess. Also, you cannot see the product inside from the packaging, this can be annoying sometimes. ELF blushes have very similar packaging to the NARS ones, except ELF used smoother materials for the case and you can see the actual color from the small clear window at the front. Yes, NARS packaging does look more luxurious and more expensive than the ELF ones, but less convenient though.

The formula is nice, not the best. It is very pigmented no doubt and the products apply easily and last very long. However, I think they are too powdery, which is okay for me if the powder can be more silky and finer. I would not say this if I have not discovered the Illamasqua blushes, and the Make Up For Ever blushes. The other two are just so smooth and almost feel like a cream texture. The pigmentation is amazingly pigmented. In my opinion, they are better than the NARS blushes.

NARS blushes retail for $28.00 and you have more than 20 different colors to choose from. If I have the money I would buy the Illasmasqua blushes ($24) or the Make Up For Ever ($19) blushes, It could be just the personal preference that I am not a fan of the NARS ones. If you want to have the NARS blushes in your collections, I will still say go for it. I will highly recommend you to try the Illamasqua and MUFE too, then you may understand why I love them so much better. :D

Disappointment Level: 2/5

NARS Multiples


First of all, I don't know if you remember I put this in my favorite face product of 2011 post before. I don't want to confuse you that whether I am talking about the same product. Yes, I am talking about the same one that was listed in my favorites. Why? When I first got this product, it was last summer, I very enjoyed using it through the summer and fall. During that time, my combination skin was more oily than dry, so I didn't find it hard to use this. Then in the winter, I did not use highlighters much, if I did, I was trying out some other stuff. Thus, in my mind, I was very pleased with the NARS multiples. That was why I had it in my favorites list.