No-frills Makeup

Just to kick off the regular blogging again, here's a short nail entry! I change my nail colour very often - not so much of toenails though. Here are some I managed to snap pictures of over the past month!

Sally Hansen Xtreme Wear in Hot Red

Urban Decay in Barlust - Don't you love the names UD comes up with? I do!

Urban Decay in Wrecked

These two UD polished are the miniature bottles from the Holiday Nail Kit 2011. They were a present from my girlfriends:)

photo credit: www.scrangie.com

The extremely shiny texture is thanks to Seche Vite topcoat. Nothing unheard of about how wonderful this topcoat is! I must say, though, that Seche Vite gets bloppy in the jar after sometime and it's not as easy to use and long-lasting compared to when it's first used. My nails tend to come off in big pieces rather than slight chipping.

Tony Moly nail polish (White)

A lot of my friends asked me how I did this without using a french tip sticker. Simple!

1) Use a toe clipper to get square nails

2) Use a pigmented white polish. It's not going to work with a watery one because you'd have to keep building up on the colour (and it tends to get messier if you have to keep applying repeated strokes)

3) Place the brush on the tip of your fingernail. Instead of swiping the brush, maneuver your finger from one side to the other, while keeping the brush at the same place throughout. Simply said, instead of moving the brush, move your finger! It may sound ridiculous, but it helps you get straighter lines :)

I applied three light coats in the picture above.

And the instagram-ed version of Barlust and Wrecked! Everything looks nicer instagramed, huh!

Follow me on Instag if you wanna and I'll follow you back ♥ It's more of my everyday pictures than anything beauty-related though! Username: elisenurasyidah

Hope you enjoyed this nail entry!

Hahah, excuse the loony pictures, but the packaging of these Tony Moly skin care products are too cute to not do a lame pose with :p They smell of what they look too - apples & tomatoes! These products, I believe, are available in Sg's Tony Moly (price is about $29). Both masks come with a spatula for hygiene reasons - which I regretfully disposed of.

First up is the Appletox Smooth Massage Peeling Mask.

Its main ingredient is keratin extracted from green apples & papayas to provide exfoliation and moisture. It works like Ginvera Marvel Gel where the dead skin cells gets rubbed away. This, however, differs a little in its usage.

Step 1: Apply onto dry face, massage for two minutes. Step 2: Leave on for 10 mins or so. Step 3: Wet hands & rub off mask to exfoliate dead skin cells for two mins. There are no legible instructions on the label, but this is how I use it & find it works best. If you exfoliate right after applying the product, the mask is not dry enough to allow the dead skin cells to 'stick' to the mask.

Post-appletox!

Verdict?

I love this product! My skin feels smooth, deeply cleansed, yet moisturized. The process is quite a hassle though so I only use it when I have the free time (about once every 1-2 weeks). Love that my skin feels translucent & clean, without the need of a heavy duty clay mask which irritates my skin sometimes. I must say, though, Ginvera Marvel Gel (roughly $16) works as well as this. This one just smells better & is more moisturizing.

Next is Tony Moly's hot seller, the Tomatox Brightening Mask.

Its main ingredients are Vitamin A & lycopene (anti-oxidizing agents in tomatoes). Step 1: Massage gently onto face for about 2 mins. Step 2: Wait for 10 mins for the whitening effects to kick in. Step 3: Wash off with water. What's lovely about this mask is that it has beads in it that burst as you massage. Literally bursting with goodness.

Post-Tomatox!

Verdict?

The first three times I used this mask, I loved it so much because it made me face two shades lighter. The effect was instantaneous - no kidding! I remember one time, after I've washed my face with this, I woke my dorm mate up just to ask her, "Is it just me, or is my face super fair now?" And in her deep slumber, she just burst out laughing on and on. She said my face looked so much fairer than my neck. I was soooo happy!

Then I realized, after several more usage, it doesn't work anymore. Yes, my skin does get lighter, but not that apparent as the first couple of times. And the fairness just last for a mere 2 hours or so. I don't even know what's the logic behind that! There's no bleaching agent though, in case you're wondering. The only time I'll use this is if I have a special event coming up and I need that extra radiance & brightness to my face. I still love this product though, but it's farrrr away from being a HG item. Ever.

Conclusion: I used both masks today before meeting my friends for a girls' night out & my skin was radiant the whole night even till I get home. I guess with both, they work as a charm. But if you have to choose, get the Appletox! It serves much better :)

I'll post up my LOTD in another entry tmr, this is getting too lengthy! Thanks for reading!

Before I go on, I apologise for the glaring flash on some photos cos I took the pictures at night. I always wanna make it a point to take good photographs! But I've been so busy in the afternoons :(

So, these are the humble buys I brought over from my Korea Summer Abroad trip! It's seriously not many, considering I was in the birthplace of cosmetics & beauty. I only bought stuff that I know I would wear. I won't be providing swatches/reviews in this entry cos there's too many products at one shot. I'll just be mainly listing down the product names, most of which are from Holika Holika, Tony Moly & Etude House.

• Cosmetics:

L-R: Holika Holika Peach Girl BB Cream, Holika Holika Baby Bloom Base, Skin Food Salmon Dark Circle Concealer, Holika Holika Pressed Powder, The Face Shop Face it Mascara, Etude House Oh~ my Eye Lash mascara, Tony Moly Lip Tint, Etude House Proof 10 Aqua Tint & Tony Moly Party Lover Liquid Eyeliner

• Skin Care:

 L-R: Tony Moly Appletox Smooth Massage Peeling Cream, Tony Moly Tomato Brightening Mask & Laneige Water Sleeping Pack

• Hair Care:

 

L-R: Missha Procure Silky Coating Hair Essence & Skin Food Applemango Volume Essence Mist

I bought a lot of nail polishes too, but I'll feature them along as I have them on my nails. I don't have the patience to do the countless swatching and then removing :O 

I am pretty sure almost all of these products are available in Singapore too, albeit the much steeper prices! I've been loving and religiously using some of these products. I will post another entry on my daily base makeup using some of these stuff. I won't be reviewing/swatching on every single one though, unless I really have something to say about it, or if any one of you request for it! :)

And a couple of nail designs I was doing while bored in my dorm abroad!

This nude, malt colour (Etude House) looks nice on its own, doesn't it?

But look at this! Intricate flower stickers from EH as well. I am not sure if these stickers are available in Sg though.

Slanted yellow manicured tip with flower details

Thanks for browsing, catch you guys soon! ♥