Quick Peek: Clinique Chubby Stick in Curvy Candy

It's no secret that I love Clinique's Chubby Sticks, and going by a Clinique counter this week, I came across 8 new shades!

(I'm not sure when exactly they finally arrived here in Malaysia, but it must have been only recently. They now cost RM58 each, up from RM50 previously. Dang.)

Take the Day Off with Clinique's Take the Day Off Cleansing Milk

I just threw this into the bin last night when I realised, "Crap, I haven't photographed this for review!"

Don't mix this up with Clinique's Take the Day Off Makeup Remover. Makeup remover. Cleansing milk. There is a difference between the two.For one, you wouldn't want to get this in your eyes. Clinique's Cleansing Milk contains something minty (binned the product box too, sorry) which smells quite refreshing, tingles on the skin and stings the eyes. I am generally not a fan of tingling cleansers as my skin can be quite sensitive but this doesn't give me rashes or leave my skin feeling too irritated.

Autumn/Winter Skincare Routine

(Would have taken a better picture but my camera died on me)
L-R: Olay Complete Moisturising Lotion, Clarins HydraQuench Intensive Serum,
Clinique All About Eyes Serum, Natio Eye Gel, Clinique MoistureSurge

Winter is just around the corner for us in Australia and I have been tweaking my skincare routine to deal with the change. While summer is all about sunscreen, exfoliation and brightening products, my winter skincare routine revolves around hydration.

Products that I have left in my routine are Clinique MoistureSurge, Natio Eye Treatment Gel and a Clinique All About Eyes serum. The latter was part of a Clinique travel exclusive set and I have only just started using it since the weather started getting chilly. I can't say if it has improved the area around my eyes but it feels quite refreshing especially on days when you didn't have enough sleep.

My Makeup Bag: Work and Uni Edition

Compare and contrast, girls: The life of a working professional versus the life of a Masters student, illustrated through the contents of her makeup bag.

Yes, that is an RM5 pouch from Daiso. I purposely picked a small bag to keep me from carrying too much around the place. As it is, this little guy can carry a surprising amount of stuff!

My Last Malaysian Haul

I am still getting used being back in Sydney -- right now, I don't even have a table to type on! -- so review posts are going to be a little erratic until I settle down. So why don't I show you my very last haul from Malaysia? Cosmetics are incredibly expensive here so I indulged in a little shopping and stocking up. I won't be back in Malaysia for a year after all.

And in no particular order...

Happy Chinese New Year!!!

Hello lovelies!

With the Chinese (or Lunar) New Year just around the corner, it's been busybusybusy all the way for me. And so soon after Christmas too.

(In case you're wondering about the picture, it's the year of the dragon this time round!)

So here's wishing all of you who are celebrating, a very Happy Chinese New Year! Hope this year will be a great year for you, and may it bring you closer to the things that mean the most to you in life.

Us So Loverly girls will be taking next week off to be with our families and friends (Kahani will be back from Hong Kong!), but expect us back the following week!

Love,
Syen, Kahani & Eli

PS: Psst! You might wanna read on for some honeylicious news.

News Flash: Limited Edition 125 ml Clinique Moisture Surge at KLIA

If you are a Moisture Surge fan and happen to be travelling through the Kuala Lumpur International Airport, please stop at the Clinique counter. Clinique has released a Big Mama sized version of Moisture Surge, priced at RM 292 for 125ml. Considering that the 50ml pot retails for RM160 and the 75ml for RM216, this is a pretty sweet deal.

Oh, and while you are at it, please pick up a tub for me too. ;)

HG Stuff: Clinique Moisture Surge Extended Thirst Relief

In coffeespeak (R-L): Short, Grande, Venti

I suspect that I am turning into a Clinique convert. I still maintain that their paint-stripping toners and the Dramatically Different Moisturising lotions are the stuff of nightmares; but their Turnaround Concentrate and Moisture Surge moisturiser stand at the top of My Favorite Skincare Products List 2011.

Kahani has reviewed Moisture Surge before but the stuff is so good for my oily-dry skin, I think it deserves a second review of its own.

I wasn't madly in love with Moisture Surge when I first got it. It was nice to use, sunk in quickly and did everything a moisturiser was supposed to do. The only difference between this and Garnier's Aqua Defense Essence Moisturiser was that Moisture Surge didn't break me out. Then, I happened to meet a Clinique SA from a different counter.

"Oily-dry skin?" she asked. "Try using double the amount you usually use. In fact, massage it in until your skin can't absorb anymore."

I blinked. Ookay.

Review: Clinique All About Eyes Eye Cream

Hong Kong's dryer climate and probably my advancing years have convinced me that I need a better eye cream than the super light Natio cream I was using. 

Thing is I am really nervous about new eye creams. They're often pricey and do nothing, or too heavy and cause breakouts and give me milia. So when I spotted this gel-creme trial size (7ml) for HKD65, I thought, what the hey and gave it a try. 

Two weeks later and I've already ordered two more of these mini jars off Strawberrynet at HKD90 for both. What's so good about it? 

Well, first off it probably doesn't do much for dark undereye circles but boy does it work for puffiness. I'd noticed my eye bags were starting to show (not usually a problem for me) but the morning after I patted this on at night, I woke up brighter, fresher eye-bag less eyes - probably thanks to the caffeine in it. 

Temporarily Discontinued: Clinique Turnaround Concentrate Visible Skin Renewer

To go all Malaysian on you readers: Why lah, must they discontinue a great product just when I have discovered it? Sial betul, right when my skin finally looks like it is going to settle down, be happy and finally concentrate on getting rid of those acne scars, Clinique turns around and bites me on the – okay, I will stop ranting now.

Anyway, I am deeply distressed by the news that Clinique is planning to discontinue their Turnaround Concentrate from their product line up this coming fall. I was suffering from awful breakouts in June and was in the doldrums of despair.

“I think,” my mother said calmly one day, “you need a new serum and moisturiser. Whatever you are using seems to be absolute crap.”

I laughed and agreed. I always had Clinique Turnaround Concentrate on my list after reading a review by Belledemoiselle so I hopped out and bought it. Salicylic acid has always been one of my favourite zit-busting products and it was a while since I bought an exfoliating serum.

And I am Back!

Syen and Kahani were kind enough to let me off blogging duty for a month, seeing how work, constant travelling and a persistent cough were driving me up the wall with little energy to spare. After the long Eid holiday and a much anticipated break with my boyfriend (am waiting for the day when I can show the finger to all those well-meaning “friends” who predicted doom and said long distance relationships don’t last), I am almost back to my usual self and am ready to report for regular blogging duty.

I am still catching up on the beauty scene so don’t expect anything from me on new trends and news ( Beaut.ie does a great job of it so go look there). I do have stuff to report from the Quest for Clear Skin Battle Front though. In brief:

My Lipstick Collection

I cleared out my makeup collection the other day and did a lip count. Are twelve lipsticks too little or too many? Four of them are in a wee palette though so I am not sure if they should be counted or not.

To get an idea of what colours I go for, check out the swatches after the jump:

The Mega Melon

Yup.

After I got my Super Strawberry, I went for it and got me a Mega Melon too.


And if first impressions are anything to go by, I am absolutely loving it!

The Super Strawberry

Friday! *woot*

Okay, now on to business. As you would have seen here, Clinique's Chubby Stick Moisturising Lip Colour Balm is a lipstick I acquired about two weeks ago, and today I'd like to tell you more about it.


So far, I'm really reeeally loving it. No kidding.

Monday's Beauty Confessions: Hong Kong Haul!

Happy Monday everyone!

Hope this is a great start to your week ahead. Kahani and I did a short trip together to Hong Kong over last week, and boy did we have fun!

There was the shopping, the clubbing and insane amount of yakking. So check out what I hauled back.


1. St Ives Soothing Oatmeal & Shea Butter Advanced Body Moisturiser - I've had crazy body moisturiser lemmings lately, and this was on my list of wants. When I came across this one on the Net, I wanted it, but it wasn't available here. So what joy when I found it in Mannings over there!

2. Nivea lipbalm in Pink Grapefruit - I got ANOTHER back-up. Because I love it that much. =P

3. Gal Collection Peach Vaseline (lipbalm) - Smelled of peach and was on offer. Enough said.

4. NARS Torrid blush - Because it's not available here?


5. Clinique High Impact SPF15 in RSVPink - Found this in Sasa or Bonjour for HKD19 (~RM8). Need I say more?


6. LUSH Mask of Magnaminty - Kahani and I shared a tub of this popular LUSH mask. Not photographed as it's currently still with her.

Not much makeup compared to my first trip there, but here's what else I brought back!


A H&M semi-trench coat - I've been searching for a decent jacket of late, and Kahani proclaimed that we would go jacket-hunting for me in HK. We found this lovely gem of a jacket in H&M going for HKD399 (~RM200) in a brown-taupe shade.

It was love at first sight. Being on the more vertically-challenged end on the spectrum of things, I thought this jacket's length was perfect for me. You can wear it light, or pad it up for colder weather by wearing a woolier top or cardi underneath. Whatafind! Wheeee!


Canon EF-S 55-250mm f/4-5.6 IS Lens - My priciest purchase in HK at HKD1,620 (~RM736), I've been eyeing this zoom lens for a while now, and when I found that it was about RM300 cheaper there... uhh... you guessed it. Granted it's made in Malaysia, and not Japan. But I've been playing around with it and so far I'm well pleased with it. A great general zoom lens for those on a budget. Awesome!

Loving Clinique Moisture Surge Extended Thirst Relief

You know, it never occured to me before that I'm a Clinique girl. As a brand I never quite identified with it. But looking at the array of Clinique products I now love - because they WORK - I have to conclude that I'm now a Clinique fan. Through and through.

The love affair started with their Clarifying Lotion 2, was furthered by DDMG and now, cemented by moisture surge. This product landed on my lap at a most opportune time. I had run out of Face Oasis and circumstances had left me too broke to replace it. My skin was steadily deteriorating - getting oilier and looking lacklustre. Well as soon as I got home from the Clinique event, I whisked my makeup off and slapped this baby on. An hour later and I was back to hydrated, glowing, happy skin. It's that good.

But I didn't impetuously review it then as I was inclined to do. Nope I've used it daily since then for over a month and now with the jar 1/3 gone I feel ready.

This light creamy pink fragrance-free gel really is a drink of water for your skin. While it claims to have lots of goodies as well all I can promise you is it will hydrate. For ladies with oily skin, it's perfect on it's own - for ladies with dryer skin, layer this under your regular lotion and your skin will thank you.

Unlike Face Oasis, this appears to sink in immediately leaving your skin 'cashmere smooth'. However I do believe it sits around as long - its formula just allows for a dryer feeling surface unlike Oasis which leaves skin tacky till it sinks in. This does make clinique's offering better for daytime use as you won't have to hang around waiting for it to sink in.

That my skin adores gel moisturisers is now a given. And moisture surge is awesome for it. No breakouts just hydrated glowing skin. I am however slightly convinced that Face Oasis leaves my skin looking happier in the morning. But this is just my opinion. From chatting with them, it seems both ParisB and Beetrice prefer Moisture Surge. :)

At RM160 a jar it's about the same price as Face Oasis, but Clinique often has better GWP offers. I will start putting RM50 aside a month to restock when it runs out because I refuse to go without one or the other again!

More reasons to love Clinique

Isn't this adorable? I got a card in the mail inviting me in to retest my skin. This isn't a beauty blogger offer mind you - it's one anyone who gets their skin classified by clinique gets. Their testing proved that I was still classified as 'oily skintype 3' and they gave me this adorable travel set. Whee! Now I'll never be without my 3-step system.

What are your fave Clinique products?

Clinique High Impact Lipstick in Magenta Rose

High impact is exactly the right description for this lippie! Even in a sweet shade like magenta rose, the lipstick is pure, bright pigment. While not exactly matte, there is no shimmer or shine in the colour. Instead it has a slightly creamy finish.

Magenta rose is a bright pink with mauve and brown undertones to add depth. In any other lipstick formula, it would be a lovely MLBB shade. However with high impact the colour payoff on the lips is exactly what it is in the tube.

The formula is not thick, and you'll feel like there's nothing on your lips. While I love the appearance of a tint, I do like some cushioning to even out my lip lines. I like that the formula isn't drying, but I still prefer to use it over lip balm.

Because the shade is so bright my fave application method is to swipe it on only the lower lip and then moosh my lips together. The sheer application of pigment makes precisely the shade I want. I also love topping with clear gloss or liquid lipbalm.

Because it is so pigmented this lipstick is very long lasting. It will fade after meals, but it fades prettily and evenly.

Conclusion
At about RM70 I find this sophisticated lipstick well worth the price as you won't find a formula like this in cheaper lipsticks. I was lucky enough to receive this tube to review and am now lemming a true red shade (of course). I can see how this formulation would be perfect for a strong red lippie.

Setting Mineral Foundations Aside & Clinique Superfit Foundation Review

This is going to be a slightly introspective post as giving up mineral foundations has been hard on me.
Ever since I fell in love with L'Oreal's True Match Minerals, then Silk Naturals and the most recent being Everyday Minerals - I have loved mineral foundations for how clear they keep my skin and their natural matte finish.

Now sadly, I have to concede that they cannot stand up to my oily skin in Malaysia, or my 12-hour workdays that involve considerable running around. I finally got tired of the caking, the slipping, the fading and the touch ups (usually around the 5-hr mark). And thanks to Tine's rave review, I put in an order of Clinique Superfit when my makeup mule made a trip to the US. Read on for the review!

Clinique Superfit Foundation in Shell
When I first got the foundation it was actually a decent match to me still as I retained the remnants of my tan - product of my last glorious summer in Europe. Now however I have to concede that my face looks darker and slightly pinker than my neck. Dang! Although Shell is fairly yellow-toned, and supposed to be for very-fair people, Neutral from the moderately fair range looks yellow-er and as light. I got a sample and will be giving it a go.

Texture, coverage & Finish
The texture of this foundation is one of the best things about it. It's very watery and light yet has very high coverage. I find however that it doesn't layer too well and can look cakey if you try. For the best finish I swipe it on with my fingers covering most of my face in a thin layer then blend out with my dual-fiber brush for a very natural, semi-matte finish.

Wear
I love that this foundations is oil free, and seems to help control my oilies to a certain degree. It isn't perfect (nothing is that doesn't break me out.. argh!) but it helps. I dust powder over and have to blot in 3-4 hours. Which for me is pretty darned good!

On the other hand, although this foundation is long lasting, I do find that it gets patchy and fades on my crazy oily skin after about 7 hours. Now, 7-hours may be enough for most, but sadly it still doesn't cut the mustard in my lifestyle. I want it to last about 10 hours at least - as that is my average working day. Not to mention be good to go if I want to go out for dinner and drinks after.

I know I'm being demanding and there may not be a foundation out there that can do what I want. If it weren't for the mismatch in colour, I'd stick happily with Superfit as I really do love it. Plus if I'm careful to remove every trace of it at the end of the day - no breakouts! Or not much - it's hard to tell as I get hormonal breakouts too. But it's not much worse than when I stick to minerals

Conclusion
So for now, mineral foundation will be for weekends to give my skin a break. For my crazy work days though it's going to be a long-lasting foundation. Unless I find the precise colourmatch for Superfit, I won't be using it anymore. I can't go around with a face that doesn't match my neck! Thank goodness it was so much cheaper in the US - about RM70 at the time.

So for now I'm giving Revlon Colorstay in Sand Beige a go - it's a perfect colour match and the new formula has been getting rave reviews online. Wish me luck that it works out and doesn't break me out! Especially since Revlon is only about RM55 compared to Clinique Superfit's RM1oo in Malaysia.