Repentance / Lessons learnt

Forgive me, Father, for I have sinned...

Today I bought what seems to be an Anna Sui Moisturizing Powder Foundation Case from MBK for 400 baht. It was supposed to be a new home for my Revlon New Complexion refill which does not fit into the Mistine Platinum case and has a case too ugly for my liking.

The Anna Sui case is too small for the refill. Just looking at it, I could tell. But I bought it anyway.

I tried to remove the Garnier Light powder from its case because it looks like it would fit. But I failed. The powder cracked everywhere. My poor Garnier powder.

The lesson is this: I should try to buy cases and refills that are made for each other, if possible. And I should try to buy less makeup because I can't use it all in time. Mostly it's powder/foundation and mascara.

Yet I think tomorrow I'll still go to Rabbo at Platinum and see if I can score Anna Sui powder case with refill or the same by Lotree. And maybe Lash Gorgeous Wing in black if I can stand to lose a few more hundred baht.

Oh -- the Anna Sui case I bought today comes with a cheap-looking sponge that seems to have been dyed purple. Not the trademark Anna Sui kind.

Note to self: when I go to the UK, I should buy some real Anna Sui powder case(s) with original refill(s) in the duty free zone.

Now if I could only find a refill that would fit this stupid overpriced case. Maybe I can get a Skin Food refill tomorrow. They're smaller than the Revlon so they might fit. Or maybe I can get an In2it refill, if it looks like it would fit.

Oh, the Revlon.

As I said, Ivory Beige is too white for me. Today I put on Fasio over Mistine BB. It seemed too bright so I put the ZA number 22 on top of that. Later, out of boredom/curiosity/procrastination, I put the Revlon Tender Peach (which I exchanged with Mum) on top of it all. It still looks a bit funny -- probably because Revlon has a more pinkish than yellow tone -- but after it blended in, it looked not so bad. No more Revlon for me, I think. Asian brands would be better for my skin tone.

P.S. Everything's not lost! Hurrah -- I just tried putting my old Sheene refill into the Anna Sui case -- and it's a perfect fit! :D Hooray~ Now if I can only find a Sheene refill...

A really quick makeupdate just to get my writing glands going...

Okay, so first things first -- the MM Lash Expander Frame Plus mascara. Lengthens pretty well on its own. My lashes are a good length already but this adds a little oomph to them length-wise. The fibres are soft unlike the Lash Gorgeous Wing ones. During the day I do get slight fibre flakage but it's nothing to get upset about. However, the more you apply the mascara and the more fibres get on your lashes, they start to get a little ... cobwebby. A good trick is to brush the other side of the tips of my lashes -- I find that gives my lashes a bit more definition. But be careful not to get mascara on your eyelids.

As my lashes are a bit long already, I prefer mascara that gives me big volume. This one, obviously, is a lengthening mascara. So I use it with my Lash Bone and I get just the right amount of volume and length -- and compliments, of course :D My lashes are almost as thick as with the Lash Bone + Lash Enamel Glamour Neo combo, but they're longer.

What else is new?

Oh -- I bought the MM Pressed Pore Cover at Watsons the other day. I tried it on top of the Mistine BB the other day and today I used Mistine BB plus Boots 17 Skin Perfecting Balancing Foundation with the MM Pressed Pore Cover on top of it all. The puff is very soft and velvety. The powder appears almost white and kind of shimmery. On the puff, it looks a pale skin or cream colour. It goes on slightly lighter than whatever I'm wearing as foundation. But I think it does a good job as a finishing powder. The whiteness isn't too obvious (unlike Mistine Platinum) and it blends in after a while. Today I was also kind of impressed with its oil control capabilities too -- but that may be due to the 17 foundation and/or the Mistine BB. It was really hot and humid today and I was sweating in the faculty library but when I got to the bathroom, my face wasn't as shiny as it normally would be, just moist and modestly shiny. And I think it does cover up the pores -- but that, again, may be the work of the Mistine BB and/or the 17 foundation. And it doesn't cake! That's the best part! However, it offers no sun protection so it must be used with lotion, base or foundation that does.

As Watson is having a Revlon sale with a buy-one-get-one-plus-one-baht promotion, and I'm kind of looking for a round powder refill for my Etude Dream On case (not that it's running out anytime soon -- it's like 12 grams and I don't even use it normally), and Mum was here this weekend, I kind of helped the BA sell us the New Complexion Oil-Free Wet & Dry Compact Make Up. First we got refills for the both of us -- hers in Tender Peach and mine in Ivory Beige (the lightest one in this range) at the suggestion of the BA. That night I tried to put my refill into the Mistine Platinum case but it was a bit too big. Tonight Mum instructed me to get some more of the Revlon stuff (is it powder or is it foundation powder?) because she said it was really good. I suggested we get the case plus refill this time as the refills aren't going to fit into our Mistine Platinum cases. So I got them. And I hate the Revlon case. Not only is it an old-lady olive green and gold, but it is so flimsy. I am considering getting an Anna Sui case or two -- at a cheap price, of course -- instead. Whenever the Etude Dream On runs out, I can put one refill there and the other one in the cheap Anna Sui case (if I can get my hands on one or two).

I plan to discard my Sheene Oil Free sample, my Garnier Light powder in Natural, and my ZA refill (22) by giving them to my mum. The first two powders are too dark for me and I suspect the ZA might be too. More importantly, when I tried to put the ZA refill into my new MM Pressed Pore Cover case, it wouldn't fit. It's just a bit too big. And it put hairline cracks into my gorgeous black MM case T^T

What to put in my MM cases once my Pressed Pore Cover and Fasio are gone? Well, I might just get some more Pressed Pore Cover. Or I could get the L'Oreal True Match or Ideal Balance. Or some In2it. Maybe I'll even get the MM Skin Remaker or some other Shiseido-owned powder from my locale at Platinum Fashion Mall.

P.S. I'm kind of tempted to get Lash Gorgeous Wing in black too. I haven't quite learned my lesson on that range yet. The short fibres sometimes get in your eyes during application and they do flake onto your face during the day but the latter is tolerable and the former can be endured.

Yayz! iGotz! ^o^

Today after my final exam I went to the Watsons at Siam Square to look for those MM Spring Collection 2009 items but they weren't on display. I walked to Central World and found that the stuff that was on display just yesterday weren't there! Hmm looks like someone mucked up. So I walked some more, all the way to Platinum Fashion Mall to the makeup smugglers' stands lol and got the Lash Expander Frame Plus for 400 baht -- 90 baht cheaper than at Watsons :D They didn't have the powder though and the ladyboy that served me didn't recommend it anyway.

Lash Expander Frame Plus, like the Lash Gorgeous Wing before it, comes in a 6 gram tube. Looks like MM is up to some 'downsizing' as my Lash Bone, Lash Enamel Glamour Neo, and the previous version of Lash Expander Neo were all 7.5 grams.

I haven't opened this new one yet as I'm already wearing mascara today but I can't wait to try it out tomorrow :D

Speaking of which, today I am wearing my Fasio mascara with Lash Enamel Glamour Neo on top. I find that Fasio on its own is too dry and looks too natural so I put the MM on top and BOOM! Uber thick lashes :D

Today I discovered a new trick too. I learned a while ago that Fasio mascara is best applied on my lashes without the use of a lash curler first but today I decided to test that theory. It remained true. So, as has become usual, I used Lash Enamel Glamour Neo to try and rectify the situation. Alas, even my beloved MM HG mascara found it hard to reach the tips of my curled lashes! So I tried putting the MM on the top side of my lashes instead of the under side as usual -- and it worked! And what's more, the definition is spectacular!

What else have I found out that I haven't blogged about lately? Well, my black Gino McCray liquid eyeliner is stunning and gives enormous impact when used with any of my black mascaras. (Yes, plural. Don't make me count how many I've got now. Don't.) But for a more subtle look, my dark brown In2it eyeliner is just fine.

And I learnt something important the other day when I wore my golden brown Lash Gorgeous Wing with my Maybelline eyeshadow quad and no eyeliner: never go without eyeliner when wearing mascara. You can wear eyeliner and mascara with no eyeshadow, but you shouldn't wear eyeshadow and mascara with no eyeliner. At least not with the golden brown shades of my Maybelline eyeshadow quad and my MM mascara.

Another note to self: don't buy non-waterproof mascara. Ever again.

While my Boots No 7 and 17 brand non-waterproof mascaras are very nice, the fact that they're not waterproof is just not practical in this kind of humid weather.

Oh and I bought the new Garnier Skin Naturals Light Visible Whitening Face Powder. First I bought it in Natural which turned out to be a bit on the orange tan side for me then I bought it in Ivory. The case seems to be an exact replica of the Maybelline Clear Smooth powder. After all, they're both owned by L'Oreal, and they sell for the same low price of 189 baht. And they both offer SPF 18 sun protection. But the Garnier one is slightly different. It claims that its Vitamin C helps to lighten the skin. My verdict on the powder itself? One pat and it gives you an incredibly smooth matte look just like the Maybelline version. And like the Maybelline version, it doesn't give my skin much oil control, if at all. But for the price and the smooth matte effect, it's wonderful for touch-ups.

BTW the Garnier powder puff, like the Maybelline Clear Smooth puff, sucks. It's like a thin piece of cardboard covered with fabric of a towel-like texture with a piece of satiny fabric stuck on the top. The powder smells the same too. And it goes on well so I guess we can excuse the lacklustre puff.