Makeup, Skincare, Fragrance and a Bit of Fashion
Earlier I wrote about Paul & Joe‘s Pearl Foundation Primer in 001 Bonbon, which is from the brand’s holiday 2012 makeup collection (and spring/summer 2012 base makeup collection). The collection also features Makeup Collection 2012. It is available in two sets, 001 Frozen Lilac and 002 Sleigh Ride, and today I am highlighting 001 Frozen Lilac.
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Kanebo Coffret d’Or‘s Cover Clear Finish UV SPF18 PA++ was released as part of the line’s spring/summer 2011 base makeup collection. (The collection also features Lucent Glow Finish UV SPF 17 PA++. They replaced Makeup Powder, which was released in spring/summer 2008 and is the line’s first loose powder.) It aims to even out the appearance of pores and create a smooth finish for the skin.
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Chanel‘s fall 2012 makeup collection, compared with the brand’s spring 2012 collection, features the same feminine shades but the overall color palette is slightly more low-key and demure. Today I am highlighting Lumière d’Artifices Beiges, Joues Contraste in 72 Rose Initiale, and Rouge Coco Shine in 74 Parfait.
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First of all, apologies for the delay in posting about this stash update.
I have to admit that, ever since the last Paul & Joe winter sale, I had been waiting for the next one. (Paul & Joe does have items on sale during the summer sale, but the lineup is usually not as impressive, and I didn’t purchase any sale item last summer.) There were a lot of items on sale for the winter sale 2011, and, for the first time (that I can remember), holiday limited-edition items were sold at reduced prices at Paul & Joe counters right on the other side of Christmas.
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In the last few years, RMK brought out deluxe makeup palettes for the holiday seasons. (See the palettes for 2008, 2009, and 2010.) There is no exception for holiday 2011, and today I am taking you though RMK Christmas Palette 2011.
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As SUQQU didn’t release a full color makeup collection for spring/summer 2011, I am sure many SUQQU fans were eagerly waiting for the brand’s fall 2011 makeup collection. The waiting is over, but are the new items worth the anticipation? Today I am reviewing Blend Color Eyeshadow in 08 Mizuaoi and Face Color Palette in EX-01.
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Launched in September in the UK, RMK‘s new loose powder, Face Powder EX, combines the soft and delicate loose powder and the ease of use and the potability of pressed powder. Four shades are available, and today I am highlighting the shade in P-00.
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– Estée Lauder Idealist Pore-Minimizing Skin Refinisher (bottom left)
This product is obviously not designed to be a primer, but the silicone-rich formula makes it a good primer. It helps disguise the appearance of pores and creates a soft-focus finish. (If you have very oily skin, be very light-handed with it.)
(I very rarely use primers and Idealist is the one I use the most (only a couple of times a year at most). Also, I don’t use oil-control primers so I don’t really have a personal recommendation.)
– ZA Two-Way Foundation (top)
I think this is one of the best powder foundations for those with combination or oily skin and it has been my favorite foundation for years. It has a semi-matte finish, a decent coverage, and a good pore coverage. The sebum-control efficacy and the overall lasting power are fairly good too.
– Coffret D’Or Beauty Lasting Pack UV (center)
Compared with ZA Two-Way foundation, it has less coverage but controls sebum better. I like it slightly less mainly because it doesn’t have the level of coverage that I want, but this is an outstanding powder foundation if you need a good deal of sebum-control.
– Lavshuca Finish Powder in Lucent (left)This is the new version of the discontinued Face Powder in Lucent. (The two are very similar.) It mattifies the skin well and has a fairly good pore coverage.
It has a subtle redness-neutralizing effect. – Kiss Mat Chiffon Powder (bottom right)It is as good as Lavshuca’s Finish Powder in Lucent. Between the two, Mat Chiffon Powder is sheerer but has a marginally better pore coverage. I quite like its skin-brightening finish.
– Coffret D’Or Makeup Powder (right)
Among the three loose powders here, this is the most natural-looking one. It has a very airy and translucent finish that almost never looks powdered, but
it doesn’t control shine or disguise the appearance of pores as well as the two above. (Among the three loose powders, this is the most likely to suit those with a none-oily skin type.)Related posts:
– If you have a drier skin type, then these items might be worth considering:
Jill Stuart Moist Silk Liquid Foundation
Lunasol Skin Fusing Powder Foundation
SUQQU Loose Powder in Natural– Have a look at my
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(image from www.clinique.co.uk)
Today I am reviewing Clinique‘s Redness Solutions Instant Relief Mineral Powder. It is from
Clinique‘s Redness Solutions range, which is mainly a skincare range that features products designed to calm down the redness of the skin. Instant Relief Mineral Powder is the only non-skincare item from the range.
As I mentioned in my review of ck Calvin Klein’s Subliminal Purity Mineral Based Loose Powder, in terms of beauty marketing (particularly with many mainstream beauty brands that are not traditionally associated with mineral makeup), a mineral or mineral-based powder is usually a talc-free powder (even though talc is a mineral ingredient) and it is usually not purely mineral. Instant Relief Mineral Powder is another example. It is talc-free and it contains non-mineral ingredients.
Purely mineral foundations/powders rarely suit me because they tend to be very drying and they usually don’t have a good staying power. Therefore, I have no problems with using powders that contain both mineral and non-mineral ingredients. Some non-mineral ingredients in foundations/powders add moisture to the products and help them adhere to the skin more evenly. Some of the non-mineral ingredients that act as emollients in this product are astrocaryum murumuru seed butter, isopropyl palmitate, lecithin, and squalane.
(The word “mineral” can mean “containing minerals”. (A mineral spring of course contains non-mineral substances.) However, I don’t think powders that contain non-mineral ingredients should be called “mineral” powders. They may confuse consumers since there are powders that are actually entirely mineral. Also, almost all foundations/powders contain some mineral ingredients anyway, and the word “mineral” in a product name, in many cases, does not necessarily differentiate one product from another.)
Instant Relief Mineral Powder is a yellow-toned loose powder that has a softly matte finish with no visible shimmer. The coverage is between sheer and sheer-to-medium. It has a fairly good shine control efficacy and the pore coverage is generally satisfactory.
I find that the yellowness of the powder does help even out the redness, but I also find that the yellow pigment goes on slightly too dark and too sallow on me. It does not have the brightening effect from some of the other yellow-toned products that I have tried.
(A yellow-toned powder from Kanebo Revue that I have works very well as a finishing powder that balances out my skin’s slight redness, which can sometimes make the skin look dull. Also, an Ettusais yellow-toned primer that I tried a few years ago had a very natural and long-lasting brightening effect.)
The powder does not contain parabens or fragrance. It contains bismuth oxychoride, which, according to Paula Begoun, may cause slight irritation but is not a toxic ingredient. (Some beauty companies, most of which are mineral makeup companies, claim that bismuth oxychloride is toxic, which, according to Paula Begoun, is not the case.)
If you are looking for a mineral loose powder, do remember that this powder contains non-mineral ingredients. Also, if you are looking for a matte shimmer-free loose powder with a decent oil control ability and would like to test out this product, do bear in mind that the yellow pigment in it may not suit all complexions.
(The product featured in this article is provided by Clinique.)
Related posts:
Clinique Even Better Skin Tone Correcting Moisturizer SPF 20
L’Oréal True Match Super-Blendable Powder
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First of all, I know that some of you have been waiting for this review for quite a while. I am sorry for the delay, and I hope you will enjoy reading this review.
Lavshuca Finish Powder was released in February this year and it is meant to replace Face Powder. It is available in two shades, Lucent and High Cover. I wasn’t sure which shade to get, since I really liked Face Powder in Lucent and I was also curious about High Cover. In the end I decided to get both.
When I saw the packaging in person, I actually liked it more than I thought I would. Obviously it is not as princessy as the more ornate Face Powder, but I still think it is quite pretty. The center of the lid is gently raised, which I think is a nice touch.
The case is smaller than that of Face Powder. The Face Powder case measures 7.7 cm in diameter (at the widest part) while the Finish Powder case measures 6.4 cm in diameter. Face Powder has 16g of powder while Finish Powder in Lucent has 9.8g of powder and High Cover has 6.8g. (I find the difference quite interesting. The two cases seem to contain roughly the same amount of powder and I think the difference is down to the ingredients, which I will touch upon later.)
The powder puff still has the cute bow, but the puff itself is smaller than the one included in Face Powder to fit the smaller case.
(Lavshuca Finish Powder in Lucent)
Now onto the powder itself. If you like Face Powder in Lucent, you shouldn’t be disappointed with Finish Powder in Lucent, which is quite similar. It is a predominantly matte setting powder with a hint of fine shimmer and with a very light coverage. It has a good pore coverage and does well in oil control. The fine powder feels soft on the skin.
I was surprised to find that High Cover doesn’t have more coverage than Lucent. (It won’t be able to replace a foundation.) Finish-wise, it is more matte than Lucent and it has no visible shimmer. In terms of ingredients, High Cover has kaolin, which is second on the ingredient list. (Lucent doesn’t have kaolin but has mica, which High Cover doesn’t have.) I do find that High Cover does a slightly (only slightly) better job in shine control, and this is probably down to the absorbent quality of kaolin. (I think the differences in the ingredients might explain why Lucent weighs more than High Cover even though the two cases have more or less the same amount of powder.)
(I didn’t include a photo of High Cover in this post mainly because Lucent and High Cover look similar in color. High Cover looks slightly lighter and slightly less yellow-toned than Lucent. Both are relatively sheer so there is virtually no difference in color when they are worn on the skin.)
Even though High Cover does slightly better in shine control, I personally prefer Lucent. First of all, I like Lucent’s soft-focus finish. It disguises the look of pores well and it gives the face a polished look. High Cover is nicely matte (not chalky matte) but it doesn’t do as well in pore coverage. Secondly, I personally don’t like kaolin in foundations. It does help absorb sebum but it can also absorb moisture, which can potentially dry out the skin.
Overall, I think Lucent should suit most skin types and should please those who go for an almost-matte finish with a touch of shimmer. If you would like a shimmer-less loose powder and if you have no issue with kaolin, then High Cover might be a good choice as well.
Related posts:
SUQQU Loose Powder in Natural
(if you want more shimmer)
Crème de la Mer The Powder in Translucent
(another shimmery loose powder)
Kiss Mat Chiffon Powder
(another great loose powder for an almost-matte polished finish)
Coffret D’Or Makeup Powder
(an ultra-natural loose powder)
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Kanebo Milano Collection 2025 for Holiday 2024 (image from www.fashion-press.net)
