[Review] Feeling Christmas-y - Gold Nail Varnish

The past few years as I've grown older and no longer count as a child that can choose toys for Christmas I haven't really felt that excited about the season.. However upon seeing Christmas decorations and lights everywhere it does ignite a child in myself and I find that I actually do look forward to Christmas really, heh. This year one of the things I wanted was a gold nail varnish to suit the season and Topshop was my first point of call as their nail varnishes are easy to apply, last fairly long and are cheap-ish (£5 for one). Also today Carnaby Street had the Grazia Event for 20% off in all their shops so I went into Illamasqua and got myself a nail varnish set with a gold glitter color and a black one, they had another set which had a red one and then a red glitter one but I had to refrain myself. I've heard good things about the Illamasqua nail varnishes so that's why I went for that brand.

Topshop 'Heart of Gold' - When I first saw the colour in the bottle it wasn't very appealing as it is very metallic but upon trying it on I quite like it.

Illamasqua 'Spartan' - This one has very big gold pieces compared with the Topshop one and it is the kind of nail varnish that when you remove it you end up with glitter all over your hands. I wouldn't wear this on its own as its more of a base color with gold glitter.

The one that I will be wearing for Christmas will be... Both of them :p
I will use the Topshop one as a base for a strong gold colour and then add the glitter from the Illasmasqua as the topcoat.

[Review] Shu Uemura Depsea Water

Today I am going to review the Shu Uemura Depsea Water in Rose. The rose one seems to be the most popular, even now I just checked Shu Uemura's UK website and the rose one is the only one that is sold out. The other scents in this range include: Mint, lavender, rosemary and fragrant-free. I got mine from the little boutique store in Covent Garden although I did check Selfridges a couple of times because it was more convenient for me however they were sold out and wouldn't be stocking up anytime soon. Taken from the Shu Uemura website the product information says:

"Eight herbal aromas formulated with Depsea Water provide a refreshing feel with a fine mist that gently wraps the skin. New pump update achieves a finer mist for enhanced comfort. Suitable for all skin types."

Ingredients: Sea Water, Methylparaben, Linalool, Parfum/Fragrance

My thoughts: I actually bought this back in summer and it didn't seem to do anything for me however I recently started using it again. The thing about combination skin is that it tends to get drier in the winter seasons and for me it got really dry! So I had to switch up my skincare routine and one of the things I changed was the Clinique Clarifying Lotion 2 which is way too harsh for winter to the Shu Uemura Depsea Water which I am now using as my toner. I can actually tell that it is moisturising my face as the dry patches disappear. It is not a miracle product (I don't think that exists) but it certainly helps me keep moisturised and is a gentle alternative, also I save on cotton pads since you can just spray/mist it on. The smell isn't too overpowering either which is another plus. I would say the downside is the price which is set at £16.50 for a bottle. However there is a 20% Christmas Shopping Evening at Covent Garden coming up on 1st December 5-9pm ^^! And you can register for a ticket here: Sevendials Covent Garden

[Review] BB Cream Skin79, Liole, Dr Jart+

BB cream or Blemish Balm cream is a staple item in Asia and now even the UK is joining in on the craze (hurrah!) with the likes of Garnier, MAC, Clinique and Bobbi Brown coming out with their own version of the BB cream. If you still do not know what BB cream is then here is a definition:

"BB Cream is somewhat a makeup product with skincare properties. As mentioned, it was initially introduced to patients who went for cosmetic surgery but still wanted to look good post surgery while in recovery. So it has more soothing/healing properties (varies from brand to brand) compared to our normal foundation. Its still best applied with moisturizer and sunblock. Different brands of BB cream has different textures , coverage and blendability." - acid2burn@Soompi.com

So basically it is a foundation with healing properties and in the Asian market there are a lot of BB cream to choose from for different skin types and the level of coverage desired. I personally do not like tinted moisturiser and so I turned to BB cream. Today I'll be reviewing 3 of them:

1. Skin79 Dream Girls BB Cream SPF 30 - "Protects skin from the sun while excellent blemish care and sebum control properties prevent trouble and shine to maintain clean and fresh skin." - Skin79NorthAmerica.com
   
   This was the 1st BB cream that I purchased and I chose it because it was recommended to me by someone on Soompi.com for combo-oily skin. Skin79 have a wide variety of BB creams to their name but Dream Girls is specifically aimed for teenagers with troubled skin. This BB cream is only available in one colour which may not suit everyone but this was not the problem for me. I found that the coverage was very sheer and it did nothing for my oily t-zone! However when first applied it was very dry on my skin. This was not a good start for me and BB cream.
2. Liole BB Cream - "It has a soft feeling and creates clear and natural skin tone by being effectively absorbed to skin. You can complete make-up speedily as it does not require any make-up base or foundation. Its bisabolol, licorice acid derivatives, and allantoin component soothe your skin and jojoba oil, macadamia nut oil, hyauronic acid derivatives, and marin collagen make your skin moisturize and smooth." - Lioele.en.ec21.com
   
   After the disappoint of the Dream Girls BB cream I didn't want to give up on this craze just yet so I got the Liole BB cream and... I absolutely loved this one! It gave me full coverage, went on smoothly and kept my face moisturised but not too oily. However the contentedness didn't last long as I continued using it I noticed that it was blocking my pores and causing spots when it is suppose to heal the skin and it doesn't have any SPF which is quite weird for a BB cream not to.
3. Dr Jart+ BB cream black label SPF 25 - "Triple function of whitening + wrinkle improvement + UV protection. BB cream that presents natural skin tone with soft and moist application. Whitening, wrinkle improvement, and UV protection (SPF25/PA+++)" - Amazon.com
   
   I had given up hope on BB cream awhile ago but I was influenced by Stylesuzi.com and my friend so I decided to try the Dr Jart+ label. When I first conducted research on BB cream I did notice Dr Jart+ and the amount of good reviews it had but I was put off by the price and the bad reviews (which there is bound to be 1 or 2). However this one is probably the best 1 out of the 3 BB creams for me. The coverage is medium, oil-control is okay and it hasn't broke me out. I've been using it for 2 weeks now and although I have yet to see if it really does have any 'healing properties' on my face it certainly doesn't aggravate it either. Another plus is that it contains SPF in it.

Swatches of the 3 BB creams, L-R, Dream Girls, Liole & Dr Jart+ Black Label

From this swatch you can see that all 3 of them are different colours and when you first put on BB cream it can appear very white but the colour soon settles into your natural skintone, I found.