The day I started packing
Favourite beauty products of 2011
I know, I know. Everyone has already posted theirs and I’m two weeks late ! Here is a list of beauty-related things I discovered or embraced in the year of the rabbit.
1. Nars velvet matte lip pencil
I discovered these gems on a family trip in Hawaii. Many hours were spent in Sephora swatching pretty eye shadows, blushes, and lipsticks and other girly items. Although, the fun was not just had by the girls. Even dad tried some foot cream .. I know right – who samples foot cream ?! (I have a polaroid as proof !). Pity I don’t work in a less conservative environment (although I’m thankful that I have a job !) as Nars has some of the most gorgeous shades of lip colour I’ve ever set my eyes upon ! Moreover, a wonderful matte lip colour range. I’ve always prefer matte textures over glossier finishes, maybe because it draws less attention to my lips.
Wearing Nars velvet matte lip pencil in Red Square. And yes, I am wearing a scarf over my head.
2. 1969 & Tobacco Vanille
I have gone on and on about 1969 by Histoires de Parfums in the past so I shan’t again but this has to be my most used fragrance of 2011. And not only by me (Thom !) ! It has a strong vanilla scent and is considered a unisex fragrance which seems to be the theme of my collection. So I suppose it’s no surprise that the next perfume I lusted after was Tom Ford’s tobacco vanille. I just love gourmands mixed with woody scents ! Plus it came in this beautiful diffuser which the shop assistant gave to my mum as a freebie. It’s nice to look at. Just don’t ask how much it costs !
3. MAC face and body foundation
Honestly, I hate looking like I’m wearing tonnes of makeup unless I’m going to a drag themed party so this second-skin foundation is great for me. And it does not accentuate dry patches on my face. Since my skin has improved in the latter part of last year and beginning of this year I can wear this more often as it is unsuitable if you require higher coverage. I love how I can just use my fingers as it blends and slips on easily since I don’t want to spend more than 5 minutes getting ready — I prefer sleeping in !!
4. Shu Uemura #18 & Becca #18 brush
I came across the Shu Uemura 18 goat hair brush at David Jones after hearing so much about it perusing through forums on how to best apply Shu Uemura nobara stick foundation. The lady at the counter asked me if I was a makeup artist and I remember feeling extremely flattered but then later realised that she had probably deduced that I was a makeup artist due to the steep price of the brush rather than the quality of my makeup that day. It is definitely not an inexpensive brush but I believe that the quality in craftsmanship shows and it is my favourite by far (you only really need a handful of good brushes). It does the best job with blending foundation into your skin and giving a flawless, streak-free finish. You can see me using it in this video.
5. Revlon ColorStay liquid liner
To answer Nicole’s question to “how do you get your eye liner on so smoothly ?”, this is the trick ! The sponge tip applicator does wonders in applying liquid liner smoothly and you can easily create thick or thin lines. And I’m saying this a someone who is quite clumsy and doesn’t have the steadiest of hands !
6. Urban Decay eyeshadow primer potion in sin
Sorry no swatches but the colour of this primer looks like the colour of the packaging ! It’s a gorgeous bronze/gold colour which I actually like to wear alone like cream eyeshadow on my eyelid without any eyeshadow. Of course, if you want to use it as an eyelid primer is does a great job at that too !
Honourable mentions: Shu Uemura hard formula eyebrow pencil in stone grey, Becca shimmering skin perfector in pearl (makes the skin look soooo smooth), Philosophy supernatural coloring book, Eyeko big eyes mascara, Helena Rubenstein lash queen feline blacks, and the no-brainer, Nars orgasm/laguna blush bronzer duo.
I really could go on and on. 2011 was definitely a year of discovery and there are so many amazing products that I would love to share with you. I’ll have more disposable income in 2012 (most of which I plan to save towards traveling and possibly other assets) so it’ll be interesting to see what other discoveries there are to be made !
One year ago: Blog’s first giveaway
Two years ago: Visited 26 countries
Four years ago: Snail mailed my friends
Story behind the title –
I’ve finally gotten the time to pack as I have this week off before I fly off to Japan. Goodbye horrible hot weather !!! My body was made for the cold. All that insulating fat will come in handy. I’m also looking forward to being able to hibernate in my favourite green coat — the one that you’ve probably seen so many times within this blog — and beanies, scarves, and gloves ! I have to try my best not to go over the 20kg limit though (always a challenge !). Doesn’t help that I have to carry that big bag (next to the suitcase) into customs to claim tax !!
Thom wearing my beanie X-D.
mookxi 
Oooh, that reminds me! I must review the Gelicious systemwe purchased! My nails are currently a lovely, deep blue- “Dip in the Pool” it’s called.
I wanna go to Japan! Hopefully we’ll get there either this year or next. Then I can buy all the obscure merchandise I can carry! Have fun :).
I saw that on Kat’s blog ! Intriguing ! I know nothing about nail art. I suppose mainly because (as my house mate once said), “you have no nails”. I think she meant that white part most people have.
And thank you. I’m excited about buying lots of obscure merchandise too !
gotta try the NARS matte pencils…I have a thing about matte lip colors but most of them tend to sink into fine lines and I end up looking…old.
Japan~ have fun! Oh to travel…
Yeah, sadly that’s the downside about matte lip. If my lips are dry and are worse for wear than it does accentuate those lines.
Thank you :-D
Thanks for those samples that you gave me on Sunday, really gonna try and make use of them in the coming weeks :). Have a great time in Japan and I’ll see you performing(!) when you get back ;). <3
Thank you ! I have more for you actually ! I hope it helped.
congrats on the job! anyways, the MAC face and body foundation looks HUGE – is it sold in Australia? I never see any big bottles at their counters and I’m always too intimidated to walk up and ask one of the staff. Have fun overseas!!!
p.s. do you watch Lisa Eldrige on youtube? she LOVES (like really) the Becca shimmering skin perfecter
Thank you :-D It IS huge — 120ml of huge ! It is sold in Australia but only at MAC pro counters so the one on Chapel St for Melburnians. Haha why intimidated ? Another alternative is buying online and it’s cheaper !
And YES. She is my favourite above all others. She’s informative, to the point, stunning, and gives so many wonderful tips and product recommendations. :-D That’s why I bought the Becca shimmering skin perfector in the first place X-D.
haha i thought so! she’s bloody amazing (i use to think michelle phan was so good – until i stumbled on her)
I’m always a little shy at cosmetics counters and pretend I know less than I actually do. I think i’m going to get the clinique airbrush concealer at some stage in the near future :D
omg you get dutyfree shoping, so jealous
I think the main reason being that she’s an experienced, certified makeup artist rather than a makeup enthusiast, like the rest of us ! There aren’t many that I follow these days. Who else do you like/watch ? Goss makeup artist is good also and so is manwomanfilm who is this Japanese lazy who does some really creative & experimental looks. I’d probably never mimic any of them but they’re incredibly fun to watch !
It’s okay, I don’t think they expect us to know much or anything at all ! Why do you feel shy may I ask ? Is it because it’s a gender thing ? I know that the majority of males in Australia don’t wear makeup but lots of them do in Asia. Another reason I like goss makeup artist — he does a lot of looks for both men & women which is interesting to me.
Yes! I totes agree and I love that when she talks about her ‘favourites’ its like – “i’ve had this in my kit for about 20 years etc. etc” not like the very common monthly favourites. Caved and bought the bourjois healthy mix stuff. plus when she has models – they are gorgeous! Also follow goss makeup artist (love how short his videos are). I’ll also selectively watch stuff from AModelRecommends, bubzbeauty etc. I’ll need to give manwomanfilm a go!
Re: counters – Its a little bit the gender thing but its also that the more I talk to them the more stuff I end up buying and i already have more products than I can use. Plus, I like to browse freely!
There are also some cool guys that do really good *natural* makeup for men but they don’t post all that regularly or have stopped altogether. My secret horrid pasttime is watching stuff from gregorygorgeous and princessjoules XD #embarassing.