Queen Helene Mint Julep/Mud Pack Masque/Cocoa Butter Scrub/Oatmeal & Honey/Nubian Heritage African Black Soap & Aztec Healing Clay Review

These are my brief thoughts on a few drugstore products that I have used since last year. Please note that what works on me might not work on you. I have an extremely oily skin and sometimes it gets dehydrated.

1. Queen Helene Mint Julep Masque.
- This is meant for oily and acne prone skin so this works like a charm on me! My skin freshens up everytime I use this mask but it didn't do much on my active acne. Cheap, smells like a minty toothpaste, a bit drier than Mud Pack Masque but it didn't irritate or dry my skin. I really recommend this to people with extremely oily skin.

2. Queen Helene Mud Pack Masque.
- Yesssss I totally recommend this on acne prone skin! I've used this as an overnight acne fix whenever I saw a new 'bump' starting to appear. Usually I would leave it until morning (although I know I'm not supposed to do that) and the bumps usually subsided. Sadly mine has expired and I didn't plan on restocking yet since I bought another mud mask to try.

3. Queen Helene Cocoa Butter Scrub.
- This is meant for extremely dry skin so my skin tends to produce extra oil and I would feel greasy so yes, not recommended for oily skin. I bought it just because it's a cocoa based product lol.

4. Queen Helene Oatmeal & Honey Scrub - Did what they're suppose to do, cleanse, remove dead skin and didn't dry my skin. Just your average skincare product.

5. Nubian Heritage African Black Soap.
- This soap is AMAZING. It controls my acne but of course I tend to get bored and would find other facial cleanser/soaps to try but I found myself keep coming back to this as a damage control lol. My whole family use this- Once, I used this to calm my daughter's eczema.

6. Aztec Healing Clay.
- Similar to Queen Helene Mud Pack Masque but a lil bit tedious/messy to use. It tightens my skin, I could not use it for more than 30 minutes. One bottle has a LOT of products and one tablespoon is enough to cover your whole face and it's soooo hard to take them off. I would use this mask on my body if I get bitten by bugs as it helps to sooth the irritation- FYI I have a very sensitive skin, bugs and mosquitoe bites gets inflammed infact sometimes they got as big as 50 cents coin

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TARTE 2016 HOLIDAY COLOR WHEEL BLUSHER PALETTE REVIEW

Hi folks!

Usually I will just reposting whatever I posted on my Instagram feed in my blog so they would feel more organized here. However this will be on of the original reviews on my blog since I have not review this palette yet and I hope it's not too late! :)

I have been wanting Tarte blusher palette more than anything and I have not had any luck last year with their four pans holiday palette. When I saw that they were releasing the 10 pan palette, I was more than excited. I could not wait to get my hands on the Tarte Holiday Color Wheel Blusher Palette. The fact that they are actually made in China instead of USA did not deter me from buying so I bought it almost instantly when Sephora opened a preview sale for black card member. The Tarte Color Wheel Palette is priced at RM195 (USD 44++) here in Malaysia.

The packaging is nothing like previous rectangular holiday palette, it is round without mirror. They pans are separated with a flimsy plastic separator but it can be removed if you want to, no harm in that I guess?

The Tarte Holiday Color Wheel Blusher Palette contains 8 deluxe size of blushers and 2 deluxe size of highlighters.

Deluxe size is 2.38g/0.084oz per pan while the regular sized blushers pan is 5.6g/0.19oz) per pan (RM122 in Sephora Malaysia). This is a bargain since like buying 5 regular sized blusher pans!

RM122 x 5 pans = RM610

You will save : RM610 - RM195 = RM415!

The top of the palette contains 'warm' side of the blushers (my favorite is mod) & the bottom side is catered to cool tones which I rarely get a chance to use.

Some of the blushers a pigmented and easy to blend however the highlighters are a bit stiff especially Crafty (see bottom side). The darker shades are actually pigmented but sadly non of them would suit my medium skin tone.  Most of them are matte with exception of Culture (top) & Concept (bottom).

I am not sure if the palette is removable/depotable since I have not seen or read any reviews regarding that.

Do I think this Tarte Holiday Color Wheel Blusher Palette is worth to purchase?

Totally yes! :)

HOW TO DETECT FAKE MORPHE PALETTE

This is series of my Instagram post, reposted on my blog :)

How to Detect Fake Morphe?

I received these pictures from one of my customers, the fake palette (marked as authentic) is sold at Lazada for RM129.

Beware of fake cosmetics since they ARE hazardous to your health/skin as we do not know what are the ingredients used in fake cosmetics. For God sake they could contain ammonia, lead or rat piss..and you- would unknowingly smear them all over your face.....well no, thank you. Ask yourselves is it really worth it risking your lives over a cheap imitation? 😫

Find out if your Morphe is fake:

1. The box is slimmer/thinner than the authentic one.

2. 'M' on the box is Red, while 'orphe' is white. (Authentic one is a little greyish)

3. No barcode on the box. Just a round sticker. (For authentic ones, it should be at the back and bottom right of the box. Round sticker is on the back of the palette)

4. The box is flimsy while the authentic one is sturdy.

5. The clasp of the palette should NOT look like the picture!

6. The inside of the fake box opening should NOT face you.

7. Sold at the fraction of the authentic price. Please consider shipping cost, tax. etc etc.

NATURE REPUBLIC SOOTHING & MOISTURE ALOE VERA 92% SOOTHING GEL

Few days left until 2017.

This year has been great, I've had a lot of opportunities to practice my makeup skills. Of course, I am hoping for more opportunities to come!

Also towards the end of this year, I was introduced into 10 steps Korean skincare routine only to know that my skin can't really keep up with all these chemicals. Sadly I'm still recovering since 4 months ago.. Don't get me wrong- the products are great but they're not for my skin type. One important thing that I've learnt is don't buy stuff just because of the hype, only get whatever you need the most. Less damage to your wallet & your skin.
Hence, I've cut down my skincare routine into 3 to 4 simple steps per day.

NATURE REPUBLIC SOOTHING & MOISTURE ALOE VERA 92% SOOTHING GEL

This bestseller does not need any introduction too because I am sure beauty junkies have discovered this a long time ago and bought them because of:

a. They like it
b. Cheap
c. To get free shipping from Hermo

VERDICT:

The product is another result of impulse buying. It comes in a big 300ml tube, contains aloevera extract with mild fragrance. It is advertised as a versatile & multi-tasking product. There are so many ways to use this... However, it did nothing to my skin inflammation. I've tried to use it on the dry patch of my legs at night and I ended up washing it because they got itchy. The itch was so bad I couldn't sleep at all. Can't really use it on my face as well. I've had the same but less-intense reaction with its spray. Also, it's tricky & messy to use due to its unhygenic packaging.

With one exception.

IT DOES A REALLY GOOD JOB AS A HAIR MASK. I repeat, A HAIR MASK. Soaked my hair with it for 5 minutes before shampooing and the result was AMAZING. My hair has never been this fluffy, fresh, shiny & bouncy (eh?). I will definitely repurchase just to use it as a hair mask.

Price on HERMO RM15- RM25++ per tube. RM40 - RM50++ for 4 tubes (depending on sales).

NATURE REPUBLIC SOOTHING & MOISTURE ALOE VERA 92% SOOTHING GEL

These are my Instagram post... I'm posting it under my blog. :)

LAURA MERCIER TRANSLUCENT LOOSE SETTING POWDER FOR ACNE SKIN

'To learn something new, you need to try new things and not be afraid to be wrong'- Roy T. Bennett

Sometime you have to try to know if certain products would agree to your skin condition. I feel the same with@lauramerciermy (and Tarte! I used to look at Tarte products while chillin at@sephoramy and said meh whatever). When I saw @shopwithshyra 's post of Laura Mercier Translucent Loose Setting Powder for RM149, I sold my TF Bonbon for it.

No regret whatsoever inside me.

Ain't dyin here.

Of Laura Mercier Translucent Loose Setting Powder, I wasn't expecting much from it but holy cow I was impressed! Not even RCMA, Marc Jacobs, Wet n Wild, or Coty Airspun could do the things that this powder could to my skin. Lately, I'm not really into full-faced makeup however despite going on a full makeup ban I would still use a foundation so I have been setting my foundation with LM and only LM alone. Guess what, my face isn't that greasy and oily, even longer than before. It sets nicely, very lightweight, does not cling on my dry/acne spots/scabs, does not crease, does no change on my foundation shade, blurs imperfection, does not feel cakey, does not have excessive fragrances, and no irritation on my skin. What more could I ask for?

The original price is RM189 but recently they had a 20% off promotion. Although I believe you wouldn't mind the price tag since the quality and the finish are superb. It's gonna cost you a little higher than any other loose powders.

Here's a simple comparison of most-raved loose powders:

Laura Mercier : 29g/1oz RM189
RCMA : 85g+/3oz RM60-RM70
Coty Airspun : 65g+/2.3oz RM40- RM45

Packaging wise? I have no problem with the plastic packaging. It also does not come with a powder puff unlike Coty Airspun- and yes I have no problem with that too.

Will I recommend this to people? Yes! An infinite yes!