REVIEW: Bobbi Brown Illuminating Cheek Palette in Peach

 The top of the palette is bright coral

~AG~

This Bobbi Cheek Palette in Peach contains Havana - a light pink brown,  Pink Coral - a bright nectar and  Peach - a golden highlight. This palette is ideal for those with light to medium skin tones. Bought it last year from Bobbi Brown website for US$50 (S$68). Took me a while to finally try this palette.

The packaging is sleek and compact. Though it does not come with a travel brush. This palette is great to travel with because it comes with 3 different cheek products - blush, bronzer and highlighter. At first I thought that the Pink Coral (shade pictured in the middle) would be too pink for my Asian skin tone. However, if you use a light hand, Pink Coral can brighten up the whole face.Usually Western makeup products tend to be intense for the contour shade, so it might not compliment Asian skin tones. Though, I would have to say Havana is not too brown for my yellow skintone. For reference, I am Chanel Shade 22 Beige Rose. It works well to contour my cheekbones and jaws. My least favorite product is the highlighter, Peach. Because the shade and shimmer is not glowy enough. With that being said, the highlighter is still okay for daily use. But for special occasions, I would stick with Becca Cosmetics Shimmering Skin Perfector.

 From Left to Right: Havana, Pink Coral and Peach

Overall, this is a good everyday cheek palette to use. The shades are flattering and easy-to-use. Instead of bringing 3 products when traveling, this palette has all the cheek products you need. Sad to say that this cheek palette is no longer available on Bobbi Brown . Though they still have a similar cheek palette available called Take It to Glow Highlight and Bronzing Powder Palette

NEW BUY: Bobbi Brown Illuminating Cheek Palette in Peach

 

Bobbi Brown Illuminating Cheek Palette

~AG~
Mid last year, I had bought this Bobbi Brown Illuminating Cheek Palette in Peach from Bobbi Brown's official website and had my friend brought it back for me. Bobbi Brown is one of the first high-end makeup brands that I discovered during my college days. Their corrector, concealer, foundations and their shimmer brick compact are well-made products. Decided to buy this cheek palette because it contains a blush, bronzer and highlighter. A cheek palette would be extra handy when traveling. Cheek Palette in Peach contains Havana - a light pink brown,  Pink Coral - a bright nectar and  Peach - a golden highlight. These shades are ideal for those with light to medium skin tones. It retailed for US$50 (S$68) which is quite pricey but it is 3 products in one packaging.

From Left to Right: Havana (Bronzer), Pink Nectar (Blush) and Peach (Highlighter) 

This Bobbi Brown Cheek Palette was available in Peach and Guava. Though their website now has only the Illuminating Cheek Palette in Guava. It is selling at a discounted price of US$21. The Guava palette is for medium to rich skin tones.

I will try this Cheek Palette soon and let you know whether Bobbi Brown blush, bronzer and highlighter are worthy addition to my makeup stash.

NEW BUY: Bobbi Brown Dark Brow Kit & Long-Wear Gel Eyeliner Duo Set

~AG~

Bobbi Brown Dark Brow Kit (S$62)
This eyebrow kit includes a mini Tweezer and mini Brow Bush. The shades, Saddle and Mahogany, are for black and brown hair. One of my aunts who is good at doing her own makeup recommended this eyebrow kit. She said that Bobbi Brown's brow powders are more natural than the wax and powder combo of Benefit Cosmetics Brow Zings. It is pricey for an eyebrow kit. An innisfree eyebrow powder kit only costs less than S$20. Bobbi Brown's brown kit is THREE times the price of an innisfree brow kit! Hope the price tag is worth it!
 
Bobbi Brown Long-Wear Gel Eyeliner Duo Set (S$59)
This duo set includes the gel eyeliners in Black Ink and Sepia Ink, with a mini Ultra Fine Eye Liner brush. Long-Wear Gel Eyeliner is Bobbi Brown's bestselling product. This award-winning gel eyeliner is a staple of many makeup artists. While doing my eye makeup for an event, I realized that having a gel liner is critical when tight-lining the eyes. I was using a felt-tip liner and it took a while to tight-line my waterlines. Bobbi Brown Long-Wear Gel Eyeliner is not a new product. Previously, I had tried it when I was living in the States. But somehow, this gel eyeliner seemed to smudge off. However, last year, when a makeup artist used it on me on two occasions, this gel eyeliner did not run or smudge off at all. So, I am going to give this Bobbi Brown Long-Wear Gel Eyeliner another chance. *cross fingers*   

Stay tuned for my review of Bobbi Brown Dark Brow Kit & Gel Eyeliner Duo Set! 

High-End vs. Drugstore (Roadshows) Makeup Products

Worth the Splurge:
1) Foundation - I almost always buy high-end foundation. The biggest factor is the process of selecting a color match. A saleslady at the counter can greatly assist in the color selection. For drugstore brands such as Revlon or L'Oreal, you often have to play the guessing game to select a color match. Plus, the lighting at the drugstore is often not suitable for selecting a color match for foundation. The only drugstore foundation brand that I adore is Bourjois Healthy Mix Foundation. But in Singapore, they sell it at BHG counter, so I had the helpful assistance of a saleslady. 
2) Concealer - There is a huge difference between high-end concealers and drugstore concealers. High-end concealers provide more coverage, and yet goes on smoothly. As with drugstore foundations, you often have to guess your color match because there are no testers available. Even if there is a tester, the lighting at drugstore is not adequate to accurately determine a color match. Drugstore concealers that have high coverage tends to be cakey too. 

 

Not worth the extra $$:
1) Mascaras - Since you have to replace them every 6 months, it would be very costly to purchase high-end mascaras such as Lancome, Dior and Chanel. Drugstore brands such as Maybelline and  CoverGirl produce good-performing mascaras that are easy on your pockets. Korean roadshow brands such as Etude House and innisfree have a good selection of mascaras as well. 
2) Lipstick - A girl needs an array of lip colors. I have a confession to make: I am a lip product junkie. I probably have more than 20 lipsticks, lip tints, lip crayons, lip glosses and lip balms. I do own some high-end lipsticks such as Chanel, NARS, Dior lipsticks. But I also own mid-priced products such as Benefit Benebalm. For affordable-priced products, my inclination is towards Korean roadshow brands such as Clio, VDL and innisfree. I especially <3 the VDL Expert Color Lip Cube Ex! 

So there you have it! Makeup products that I splurge on, and those that I save on. Tell me about yours!

Eyeliners Series 2: Comparison of Gel Eyeliners

GEL EYELINER

~AG~

This is my second favourite eyeliner type. Gel eyeliners are like colour paints that require a brush for application. This is the most versatile type of eyeliner, you can use it to create a fine tip or dramatic cat eye. However, the catch is, it requires lots of practice to get the results that you want. It took me more than 10 tries to finally get the eyeliner look that I want. So, don't give up if you are trying to use gel eyeliner and it does not give you the look that you want. Just keep on playing with it :)

For some people, gel eyeliner works great and stays on all day. But for me, the creamy formula seems to smudge off after a few hours. Even makeup artists' favourites such as the Bobbi Brown gel eyeliner smudged on me. Do note that, gel eyeliner staying power is longer than that of pencil liner. However, I personally attest that felt-tip liner are the most long-lasting one. 

To successfully apply a gel eyeliner, you first need to invest in good eyeliner brushes. I recommend that you get at least two eyeliner brushes. One to create a soft eyeliner look and another for a bold look. Another great tip I learned is to brush excess eyeliner on the back of my hand for smooth application. This creates a clean and non-flakey eyeliner look. 

 

A slanted angle brush to create winged liner or cat eye. 

 

 

A fine eyeliner brush to line closest to the eyelids. Perfect for days when you want a no-makeup look.
 

 

 

MAC Fluidline

PROS:

• This gel liner is creamy and easy to apply. 
• It dries quickly on application which is good because I don’t have to keep my eyes closed for a long time (<30 seconds). 
• This eyeliner can be used to draw fine lines or more dramatic lines such as winging. 
• The color that I tried was Dipdown a rich brown shade. Even though it looks light brown on the pot, it is more pigmented in real-life. Great for everyday use.
• More affordable than Bobbi Brown at US$16

CONS:

• It still smudged to my bottom eye area even with eye primer and shadow. I was not expecting this after all the rave review.

P.S: Some people complain that this gel eyeliner dries out after a while but mine is still creamy after more than a year. A trick that the lady at the MAC counter told me is to put it back into its original box. She says it somehow helps reduce it from being dried out.

*If you are thinking of trying a gel liner, you should definitely try this out

Tony Moly Backstage Gel Eyeliner

PROS:

• This gel liner is more creamy compared to MAC Fluidline
• The packaging comes with a handy eyeliner brush, which is great for travelling
• The most affordable gel liner that I have tried. If you purchase it in Korea, it costs less than US$10. 

CONS:

• It smudged to my bottom eyelids after a few hours. It is more long-lasting then Bobbi Brown Gel Eyeliner. However, I would not recommend it in Singapore's humidity. I think it works better for non-humid weather.

Bobbi Brown Long-Wear Gel Eyeliner

PROS:

• This gel liner is not as creamy compared to Tony Moly Backstage Gel Eyeliner or MAC Fluidline
• For a recent wedding that I was a part of, the makeup artists used this on my waterline. It is safe to use on the waterline, it does not irritate the eyes.
• This eyeliner can be used to draw fine lines or more dramatic lines such as winging. 
• Very pigmented

CONS:

• Expensive at US$25
• It smudged to my bottom eye area after two hours of use. I was expecting it to be more long-lasting.