Make Up Store – Bubbly Michelle

Foundation recommendations for Dry & Normal skin

September 13, 2015September 13, 2015by Bubbly Michelle4 Comments

Todays post is all about foundations suitable for dry and normal skin. A chatty entry, just running through a few bases that i’ve been loving for their nourishing and smoothing properties. As you may know I have combination skin with cheeks that are slightly dry and on my search for the perfect base, I came across these gems which would work better for normal, dry or mature skin types. If you fit the description, this post is specially for you!

A. Medium coverage foundations

These particular suggestions also happen to be hybrids. Foundations infused with skincare which I highly recommend for mature skin types so that you receive some anti ageing action, while looking flawless!

1. Clé de Peau Beauté Radiant Fluid Foundation.

A lightweight satin finish foundation that glides on like silk while correcting any redness and minor imperfections with ease. As the name suggests, this foundation is all about delivering a radiant, luminous glow associated with healthy youthful skin which instantly brings life to a dull complexion for a younger and well rested look.

This foundation was my everyday staple before I moved to a warmer climate. It has good sun protection (SPF 25) which made it great for day to day use but didn’t last too well in extreme heat, specially on my oily t-zone. The drier parts of my face do hold up well though, therefore best suited for normal to dry skin types.

2. Lancome Absolue Sublime Rejuvenating Essence Foundation

This too has a similar finish to the Clé de Peau. Coverage wise it’s a solid medium and buildable to a fuller finish. What makes this special though is that it comes with the skincare benefits of Lancomes premium skincare line, the Absolue range. Highly recommend this for mature skin types that are showing signs of ageing. It’s a beautiful lightweight option for those of you who like a skin like finish without compromising on coverage.

3. By Terry Sheer Expert

It was love at first sight. This foundation perfects the skin, colour correcting, blurring pores and imperfections without breaking a sweat. It’s still one of my favourite day time bases. Of course with my oilier skin this does slide off easily if I don’t prep well with a mattifying primer, but the extra work does pay off as this never fails to get me compliments on my very ‘healthy looking’ skin. As with the other two high end options, this too beats $100 price mark since it does contain skincare properties, but as they say, good things don’t come cheap and this is a splurge well worth the money.

*If you prefer a fuller coverage foundation, you can try the By Terry Cover Expert. A bit more perfecting in comparison to this. But just as good!

Here’re all three swatched so you get a rough idea of the formula.

B. Sheer coverage foundations

1. La Mer The Reparative Skin Tint SPF 30

This one’s more of a tinted moisturiser type base. Very lightweight, offering sheer but slightly buildable coverage. The finish is extremely dewy with luminosity like you’ll never believe! A nice option for glowy summer skin (incidentally it launched right on time for summer! Smart move La Mer.)

I found this lacking the coverage I am used to, but if you already have good skin and looking for something luxurious to splurge on, you might like this! It comes infused with the signature La Mer Miracle Broth promising skin luminosity while visibly smoothing skin and energising it’s natural repair process. It’s more skincare with a touch of colour.

As someone who’s already familiar with their skincare and it’s incredible regenerative properties, you’d see why I didn’t waste any time trying this. The only down side being the high price point and the very narrow colour selection of 5 shades (I use light medium 03). Anyway I like this one and you might too!

2. Make Up Store Ultra Light Foundation (best suited for normal skin)

This is a very light weight sheer foundation. Just a wash of colour while lightly colour correcting the complexion. This would also work great as a sheer base for a powder foundation providing the skin with light hydration maintaining the bare skin effect. You won’t feel like you have anything on to be honest!

A good option if you are new to wearing foundation and prefer a lighter coverage with the added perk of a more affordable price point. Also a nice base for summer time when you don’t want to look like you are wearing foundation but don’t feel comfortable heading out bare faced.

3. Chantecaille Future Skin

One of my all time favourite foundations. It’s ultra light weight and the most skin like base i’ve ever used. Future Skin has a very high water content which makes it hydrating without the rich and heavy feel of an oil based foundation. I’d recommend this for normal to slightly drier skin types (not so much for the very dehydrated and dry ones).

Formula is a lightweight gel/whipped consistency, and recommended that you use a brush or fingers as a sponge would absorb a lot of the product (after all it’s said to contain 60% charged water!). The best thing though is this colour corrects beautifully without much coverage (sheer to medium), leaving the skin hydrated and slightly glowy.

Onto swatches of the three.

C. Full Coverage Foundation

Just one option here as I don’t own any other full coverage foundation that’s nourishing and suitable for drier skin types.

1. Mac Pro Longwear Nourishing Waterproof Foundation

I’ll keep it brief as I have just reviewed this foundation already, which i’ll link HERE. But here’s the gist of it.

Pro Longwear Nourishing Waterproof foundation is a lightweight, full coverage foundation suitable for all skin types.

This applies smooth without catching onto any dry patches and perfects skin to a flawless finish. It also has excellent oil control properties making it ideal for normal to combination skin alike although nourishing and smoothing on dry skin. An all rounder with impressive staying power, one of the best foundations i’ve tried this year and comes highly recommended!

P.S- If you have severely dry skin with flakiness, make sure you prime well with a moisturiser to make sure application is smooth. Eitherway, it’s something definitely looking into.

With that I conclude todays post. I thank you for reading and hope you found it informative. If you need any additional info on the bases featured here, please feel free to ask me in the comments! Hopefully you found something that suits your needs!

Wishing you a wonderful day! Michelle.

Makeup

What’s in my makeup bag?

January 5, 2015August 1, 2015by Bubbly Michelle11 Comments

Hi There!

How’s the beginning of the year been treating you so far? Good I hope!

In my case, the start of the year has been somewhat busy and I have just returned back to the city from a week long stay at the beach.

So today I dumped out the contents of my makeup bag so I can share with you a couple of things that have been proving quite useful while I was away!

Here’s a little peek.

As you can see i’ve changed my makeup bag, yet again. This time I swapped it for a very light weight, black Ferragamo version which basically was free. It’s the Qatar airways travel pouch from my last trip. The case can be wiped clean and is pretty sturdy and most of all it’s the lightest makeup bag I have ever owned! Which means… I get to stuff it with even more product without it weighing a tonne!

What’s inside?

As always i’ve got my Chanel mirror and Hakuhodo lip brush in there, staples. In addition, this time I also have a brow brush, also by Hakuhodo which I use with my Tri Brow palette by Make Up Store. The Make Up Store brow powder is a new addition to my stash. And is great for speedy brows. In the event I don’t have time to whip out my Anastasia Brow Wiz, this is my next best option. On it’s own it doesn’t give me a perfectly defined brow as I do have rather patchy brow hair which also is very fine! But when i’m running late, i’d rather have presentable brows than no brows at all!

In the event you do have rather neat groomed brows without too many bald spots and you want some extra definition, a brow powder will be your friend. It’s easy to use and gives your brows a very natural finish.

On regular days I use my Anastasia Brow Wiz to fill in bald spots and give the ends of my brows a bit more definition by using the darkest shade in my Make Up Store Tri Brow. It really defines them well and gives the illusion on a fuller, more youthful brow.

Next up, lips. I haven’t got any lipsticks in there. Mainly cos I don’t wear lipstick while i’m chilling at the beach, unless it’s dinner of course and I whip out a bright orange.

The three products I relied on were the Tom Ford Rose Crush Gloss, my very first Tom Ford gloss, Tarte Blissful Lip Surgence lip gloss that came in a Sephora lip kit set, (I never really went out and purchased this) and my holy grail lip balm, the Ettusais Lip Essence. In fact I’m just reapplying it right now.

The Tom Ford lip glosses truly are hard to beat. They are non sticky, highly pigmented (as far as lip glosses are concerned) and long lasting. Rose Crush is my most used colour and it goes really well with medium tanned complexions. I highly recommend this.

The Tarte Blissful gloss is a sheer peach coral shade. Smells like sugary vanilla and does a good job of keeping the lips hydrated. I enjoyed this gloss, although for some, the smell could end up a bit overpowering.

For skincare, I relied on my Crabtree & Evelyn handcream in Caribbean Island Wild Flowers & the Kiehl’s Ultra Light Daily UV Defense SPF 50 PA+++.

Truth be told, I packed this C&E handcream for it’s very beach appropriate, fresh smell and pretty packaging with the coral motif. There I said it. However C&E is in fact one of my current favourite hand cream formulations as it’s hydrating, yet non greasy. It’s a good medium between my heavy La Mer handcream and other lighter options like the L’Occitane ones.

The Kiehls sunscreen on the other hand was as essential. I use this for my arms and chest, hence why I have it in this lager size. For the face I strictly rely on my Avene one which has SPF 30. I don’t take that around in my makeup bag as I never reapply my sunscreen on my face. Bad I know. But I do liberally apply the Kiehl’s one on my arms every 2-3 hours or so. It’s a nice light texture and doesn’t have that god awful, typical, old-school sunscreen smell.

Next up two perfume samples I carry for touching up. My favourite between the two, Guerlain Aqua Allegoria in Manderine Basilic. I love the fresh zesty fragrance of this and pairs well with humid, sweaty weather. I plan on purchasing the full size when I go back to Singapore next week.

The other newer addition was the Giorgio Armani Si Perfume. Something a little too sweet for my liking, but it came in my travel pouch so I let it be there.

Last but not least, two essentials. Oil blotters by The Body Shop (a must in this crazy humidity) and a mini deodorant spray by Sephora. Normally I would stock up on the Sephora Deodorant Wipes. They are easy to carry in your bag and great for a quick freshening up midday. I picked up the spray this time around as I believe it was something new at Sephora SG. Since i’m yet to use this, can’t tell you anything except that it will fit into your tiniest of clutches, no problem 🙂

So that concludes my ‘What’s in my bag’ mini post! I hope you found it a useful read and discovered something new.

Wishing you a great start to the week AND new year, Michelle.

Makeup

Make Up Store Autumn 2014, PAINT collection. Review, Photos & Swatches

September 20, 2014September 20, 2014by Bubbly Michelle2 Comments

For those of you who caught my Make Up Stores Autumn Winter launch roundup a while ago, here’s the next installment. Swatches of the Paint collection which released in August. I’m a little late, but I hope you’d still find this post useful 😉

A quick look at the products that released.

Two eye shadows –

Atelier – a soft powder blue

Paint – a medium Azure blue

Due eye liner pencil –

Blue Pigment – a medium bright blue + deep navy blue

Duo lipstick –

Graphic– a warm light pink with a beige core

Lipgloss wand duo –

Portrait – a soft pink mixed with a deep burgundy

Blush –

Rosso Verona – A bright pink red with speckled tangerine and magenta

* There’s also lashes and neon Nail Deco in ‘Drip Drop’ that came out with this collection

Let’s start with my favourites from this collection, Rosso Verona. A blush after my own heart!

Although it may look intimidating in the pan, it actually delivers a very believable, natural flush which is perfect when paired with softly defined eyes and a good MLBB (my lips but better) lipstick. That being said, this product was soo pigmented I needed the lightest touch to get the desired intensity.

Those of you who love bright and well pigmented colours like Exhibit A by Nars or Illamasqua blushes, this would be right up your alley.

Here’s the swatch. It actually IS this intense when swatched with a heavy hand and I am happy to report that it was never powdery and had a beautiful satin sheen.

So as you may have gathered by now, the collection is all about fun and bright colours as the two eyeshadows seen below,

Atelier and Paint.

Between the two I find Atelier more to my personal taste. A pretty feminine shade to add some colour to the eyes. Atelier applies true to pan even on my medium complexion and shows up well. the pigmentation wasn’t very high, and slightly powdery during application.. However I didn’t find it a difficult colour to work with as it can be built up to a good colour saturation and it was quite a welcome addition to my eyeshadow arsenal which lacks a good matte powder blue. I recommend using this over a primer to prolong wear.

Paint is a bright medium blue. Which pulls rather teal when I apply it on my yellow toned skin. On those with neutral colouring this should show up more bluer. The colour payoff wasn’t stellar so building up was needed to achieve the more intense colour I was looking for. Normally Make Up Store matte eyeshadows are some of the silkiest and pigmented ones out there so I did feel slightly disappointed.

Duo eyeliner in Blue Pigment

The mix of blue and navy can be used to create several eye looks without having to invest in two different products. Also the design enables you to even create an ombre look if desired and did deliver good colour though it did drag a bit on the lid.

Onto lip products!

So i’m most excited about the candy inspired spiral duo gloss, Portrait! I love anything that’s inspired by sweets to be honest. Cupcakes, lollipops, macarons… the list goes on! So it was inevitable I fell for the packaging before I even opened the gloss!

Luckily though it was not just a pretty face. It’s actually a well pigmented gloss that delivers good colour which translated semi opaque on the lips! Excellent formula. And at the price point I feel everyone should pick up one of these. The mix of the two shades, pink and burgundy created a dusty mauvey pink that’s very wearable day to day. I see myself using this a LOT. I specially believe those with even medium to darker skin tones would love this as it does show up on pigmented lips.

The lipstick Graphic is a soft pink. A shade more suited for fairer skin tones. I like the cute design with the sheer beige core. This is to give the lips a 3D effect so that once applied, the centre of the lips glisten and give more volume and depth. Since my lips are rather pigmented this doesn’t show up on me much. On fairer complexions this would look really pretty though.

The texture of the pink feels a slightly dry, so application gets a bit uneven if you try to build it up and catches onto flakey bits. I suggest you give your lips a good scrub before slapping this on and wear it in a thin layer.

Final thoughts

For those who are interested in trying this collection I’d recommend the blush, the gloss and the light blue eyeshadow which is absolutely cute. I feel the powder blue paired with a satiny peach gold eyeshadow would look stunning!

Other info

Microshadow in ATELIER – S$27

Microshadow in PAINT – S$27

Eyepencil Duo in BLUE PIGMENT – S$27

Duo Lipstick in GRAPHIC – S$29

Lipgloss Wand Duo in PORTRAIT -S$31

Marble blush in Rosso Verona – S$32

Make Up Store can be purchased at the stand alone store at Paragon 2nd level, also at Robinsons beauty department at Heeran as well as Vivo City.

*All the products featured were a press sample I received for review when I attended the blogger event in July.

Makeup

Make Up Store Autumn 2014 collection news

July 31, 2014July 31, 2014by Bubbly Michelle1 Comment

So a couple of weeks back I had the privilege of previewing the Make Up Stores Autumn 2014 collections.

As someone who is already familiar with most of it’s products, I can say they do ‘colour’ really well! Somewhat of an artistry brand if you may, very similar to the likes of Illamasqua and Nars. What I love about brands like this is that the formulations are stellar and pretty much consistent unlike high end brands which seem to release random duds. Their shadows are always very pigmented, the blushes apply like a dream, and the eyeliners are some of the best out there in my humble opinion.

As you could imagine I was very excited to see tonnes of colour in the new releases. ‘Paint’ which is set to release in August being my favourite.

Let me take you through what’s new for Autumn in a collage form ❤ with a few items that caught my eye in each collection.

I like that the autumn releases come in little capsule collections each month.. And this time around there’s Paint, Scream, and Art. All very different as far as the palette goes, but gorgeous none the less!!

Here’s a look at what’s coming out with the Paint collection releasing in August. Talk about about a riot of colour! Don’t you love it??!!!

As you can see, it consists of two eyeshadows, a gloss, lipstick, pencil liner and a marble blush. There’s also fun little neon nail art embellishments which would be perfect for dressing up a simple manicure.

If I had to pick one item, i’d say go for the marble blush Rosso Verona (SGD 32). These are soo pretty and pack some very good colour!

For those with a more adventurous spirit, the two matte shadows (Atelier and Paint retailing at SGD 27) make for very interesting additions to any makeup collection. Although the satin finish is my personal favourite, Make Up Store is actually known for their amazing quality matte products, so you can’t go wrong there..

Considering the entire collection, the most unique though was Blue Pigment dual colour eye pencil (SGD 27) and the duo lipstick Graphic (SGD 29) and of course the candy inspired lip gloss in Portrait! (Which make for fabulous gifts btw) .

P.S- Portrait is actually more of a flesh toned pink shade on the lips. The burgundy and pink mixes into this interesting colour which is extremely flattering. This retails at SGD 31.

On to some pics I snapped at the event 🙂

Watt Microshadow from the Scream collection which is set to release in September

Packing a travel makeup bag

July 19, 2014July 19, 2014by Bubbly Michelle18 Comments

What better time to do a post on how to pack a travel makeup bag other than when I am about to travel right? So here I am transiting in SL, waiting for some last minute documentation to come through and head on a nice little summer vacation to an undisclosed place 😉
In the mean time let me show you what I’ve packed.

This looks like a lot. And yeah maybe it is. But other than those few extra eye palettes, everything else is my day to day makeup. Plus it’s for a slightly longish trip so I needed a few extras to avoid regret!

To make sure you don’t miss anything, I suggest you follow a check list or pack things in the sequence you apply your makeup, so you go step by step and don’t forget anything. I have a nasty habit of leaving mascaras and eye primers behind, so I have finally, FINALLY got a checklist ready to make sure I don’t leave things behind in future!

So here’s a list of what would essentially be in my travel makeup bag.

1) Foundation (Or BB cream, tinted moisturizer depending on preference)

2) Primer* (Essential if you want to keep your foundation in place. No time for touch ups when you are busy relaxing or just having fun right?)

3) Concealer

4) Setting Powder (I use the Chanel Les Beiges in 02 and I also packed a little sample of my La Mer powder in a Sephora jar as well!)

5) Finishing Powder (Optional)

6) Bronzer (Optional)

7) Blush (One pink and one coral toned is ideal so that there’s something that matches your lipstick choices, if you wear deeper shades of lipstick, a nude or a beige blush will be good to have as well)

8) Highlighter (I didn’t pack a separate highlighter as I plan on using the lightest shade of my Edward Bess Quad Royale! Love a good multitasker)

9) Eye Primer

10) Eyeshadow palettes (Easier to travel with than packing a load of singles. I usually pick one neutral quad for daytime and a smokey quad for night, I also pack a peachy shade too cos I am obsessed with peach and can’t live without a peach fix even while I’m on vacay!)

11) Eye liner (Liquid or khol liner depending on preference. And if you are heading somewhere beachy, some colourful waterproof eyeliners are a great addition since they are a fun, easy way to update a neutral day time look with minimal effort, and the best part is, they take up very little space and I love throwing a few of those in)

12) Mascara

13) Lash curler (Optional)

14) Brow products (Pencil or powder or BOTH if you are brow obsessed like me)

15) Lip products (I usually pack reds and nudes as they are easy to pair up with my daily looks)

So here’s more close ups of what I packed. I used my Laura Mercier Artists portfolio to pack a majority of these.

The foundation + Kevyn Aucoin SSE + primer ( I packed in a zip lock bag), lash curlers (in their original box) and the massive It Palette, they all went in my cabin bag safe and sound, tucked between my clothes for extra cushioning. The Guerlain travel Meteorites though I packed in their original box and put it in my hand luggage as it’s packaging is fragile. I don’t want to have to deal with a cracked jar while on vacay! Instant fun spoiler >.< .

As you can see I went to town with lip products and eyeshadows, of course this is totally unnecessary and you don’t have to pack that much! In this case the eyeshadows were packed mainly cos I want to test them out for upcoming blog posts, and the extra lipsticks though are simply cos I like having tonnes of choice in the lip department as it’s usually an easy way to tie an outfit together and look well groomed without much effort. Normally I transfer all of these into a little pouch when I arrive at my destination so that they are in one place for easy access when I put my makeup on.

So there you have it. Packing made simple. Of course many things I included are luxuries to have while on vacay. But if you are like me and consider your daily makeup routine more of a relaxing ritual, then all of these are essentials 😉

Finally, thank you for dropping by today, I wish you all a wonderful weekend, and don’t forget to enter the Benefit Giveaway thats open to Singapore residents (P.S- make sure you read the giveaway instructions well so that your entry qualifies for the giveaway).

Michelle.