Favorite Summer Pastel Nail Polish Colors + Recommendations

When it comes to switching makeup between seasons, playing up your manicures is the easiest place to start. For me though, pastel & bright nail polishes are my JAM. I literally wear them all year. So when summer rolls around, I have plenty of colors (& polishes) that I can recommend you to try out asap!

Collective Makeup Haul - Highend + Drugstore | MAC, Sephora, MUA, MRL etc.

Hi there ! Last month (November) I bought a lot of makeup so I wanted to do a haul post about the products I purchased that month. However, there’s one product that didn’t reach me in time so this post got delayed and also...I got lazy because there were so many pics to be clicked! Nevertheless, I hope the haul is a treat for your eyes, as it is for mine. This is probably my last makeup haul for 2015 (a girl can hope !)...uhh wait...I have to try something from the Maybelline Fit Me Range in India...

Drugstore =) :

-Nykaa Pastel Nail Enamel Mint Meringue & Hasta La Pista : Rs.150 / $2.2 each 
Nykaa's debut nail polishes, I'm happy to support them, will share my thoughts on this range soon. See Mint Meringue in action here. Buy here .

Fall-Winter Favorite : Bourjois Healthy Balance Unifying Powder 53 Light Beige / Beige Clair Review

I purchased the Bourjois Healthy Balance Powder during summers partially because everyone was raving about it and also because I’d initially planned on buying the Healthy Mix foundation, but after I saw that it’s not sealed I was very hesitant. So I walked home with just the powder, which is sealed. It claims to give 10hr Matte Finish and a Healthy Glow, I was simply hoping that it will become my go-to compact for the summers. Let’s see how it fared.

Bourjois Paris Twist Up the Volume Mascara Review + Demo

For the longest period of time, I’ve been a stern Maybelline Mascara user! I’ve tried all variants (right from my teens) & because they were so good & affordable, I’ve repurchased them over & over again. However, one fine day in March, I decided to branch out a little and try some other mascaras, and that’s how I ended up buying the Bourjois Twist Up the Volume Mascara. I originally wanted another mascara from them, but it was OOS :(         Just FYI, Bourjois products are not sealed, so be careful when you’re buying their products. If you see the SAs open any product – BB cream, Mascara, lipstick etc. make sure that you report them to the store manager! Bourjois is considered as a drugstore brand even in India, but actually its not. Drugstore products are those that you can literally get at your drugstore (general store) like Health & Glow or New U, but I’ve never found Bourjois products there! Anyways, lets get on with the review.

Price: Rs. 830 / ~$12.7

Qty: 8ml / 0.27 fl. Oz.

Shelf life: 6 months after opening

Company claims:
Two transformable brushes in one!
Use position 1 to lengthen and separate lashes
Use position 2 to volumise and intensify lashes
Its intense black formula quickly builds full coverage and volume on every single lash.

Lashes look visibly lengthened and perfectly volumised!

My experience with the Bourjois Twist Up the Volume Mascara

Packaging: The Bourjois Twist Up the Volume Mascara comes in a simple black case which actually looks pretty cheap (for the price!) . The top part of the cap is twistable – you can twist it to change the shape of the wand. Twisting it to the right gives you a shorter & conical wand with bristles slightly densely packed for adding more volume; at least that’s the intention. Twisting that back to the left gives you a straight, longer wand with bristles slightly wider apart than the volumising wand, this is supposed to give your lashes a defined length.

volumising wand

lengthening wand

Product vs Claims:

For the first many times when I used the Bourjois Twist Up the Volume mascara, it honestly felt quite gimmicky & hard to use.  I’m accustomed to the Maybelline mascaras & those have a drier formula. The formula of this mascara is runny. On top of that, both the wands are pretty different to the Maybelline mascara wands. I feel like the Maybelline wands actually have hairy bristles and this mascara has plastic bristles. I don’t know if the material is indeed plastic (can’t find the details anywhere!) but it takes a bit of adjusting at start. You really have to spend time figuring out how to make the wand work best for you (though this is true for any mascara!) and since there are 2 wands here it takes double the time.

just with lengthening wand

The color of the mascara is jet black. Honestly, the difference between the Lengthening Wand & the Volumising wand isn’t much. The Lengthening Wand does make my lashes look a longer than they are however it gives absolutely no volume. It separates each lash without clumping (see pic above). The volumising side of the Bourjois Twist Up the Volume Mascara is not the most impressive volumising mascara that I’ve tried(see pic below). I mean, Maybelline Falsies Volum’ Express is the winner any day, hands down! As you’ll see from the pics below, it does curl up my lashes and gives them volume. But its not as dramatic as I’d like it to be. There’s isn’t much difference between the effect both wands give my lashes. Both the wands curl my lashes a bit.

just with volumising wand

The Bourjois Twist Up the Volume Mascara is suitable for everyday office wear. But I could definitely do with more volume, that’s why I sometimes curl my lashes before I apply it, this gives a more dramatic effect.

Legthening + Volumising wand :

To get the best of both worlds, you can also use both these wands together. In the pic below, I haven’t curled my lashes & I’ve used both the wands one after the other, going back and forth as needed. I’m pretty happy with the effect, the volume is definitely to my liking & my lashes look quite wispy! I recommend not putting too many coats because the formula is wet and can make your lashes look very sparse.

lengthening & volumising wand combined

Weartime: 
Bourjois Twist Up the Volume Mascara has a very impressive weartime. It stays on my eye lashes without making the lashes droop for 12 hours straight, after which I had to remove my makeup. One thing I really admire is that the Bourjois Twist Up the Volume Mascara doesn’t smudge at all, this is something that some of the Maybelline washable & waterproof mascaras lack! It also doesn't flake during the day.

Removal: 
the Bourjois Twist Up the Volume mascara I have is not waterproof (another first for me!)so it is easy to remove with any makeup remover, even Bioderma.

Overall Verdict: 3.8 / 5

I won’t consider the Bourjois Twist Up the Volume Mascara as a must have, but it’s good for everyday wear if you don’t like heavy volume. I like that it easily separates lashes, doesn’t smudge at all & wears for a really long time. However, there are definitely cheaper mascaras in the market that can do the same task. The formula has never irritated my eyes so that’s another plus point.

Bourjois Levres Contour Lip Liners Enjoleuse (11) and Rouge Soyeux (20) Review, Swatches, Price in India

If you have a ton of lipsticks like me, you’ll realize that there are some colors you love but unfortunately they don’t last long on your lips ! Like… the nudes & MLBBs. I love the Street Wear Ruby Riddle lipstick, it’s a lovely warm peach shade on me but it wears off soon! Lip pencils are a must have for lipstick lovers me who want to make their favorite shades last longer! I usually invest in a lipstick only after making sure its long lasting, but you can’t always be sure when you’re purchasing a newly launched item no ?

Let’s factor in lip glosses as well! I own few (just 5) out of which Maybelline’s Mirrored Mauve (LOVE the shade) has the least staying power and it’s a lovely one to wear daily. So how do we solve this recurring problem of low-weartime with our favorite lip colors ? 
[a] STOP buying them (gasp !!) [b] invest in a good lip liner or a lip primer.

Like any other makeup lover, I choose option (b) and purchased the Bourjois lip liners. I have the shades Enjoleuse (11) and Rouge Soyeux (20) cause lip primers aren’t mainstream in India, ‘ya know. Read on to know more about them ^_^

Company Claims:

High definition and long-wearing lip liner for ultra lip comfort.
Its ultra-soft khol tip draws a smooth and precise lip contour to line the lips and prevents your lipstick from running for hours on end!
Enriched with mineral and plant pigments (rose and green tea) it is good for your skin. The formula is easy to blend, comfortable and smoothly glides onto the lips, leaving a soft velvety finish.
Bourjois Levres Contour lip liners are available in 12 Shades: 
Enjoleuse (11), Facetieuse (12), Coquette (13), Rouge Seduction (14), Rose Precieux (15), Extravagante (16), Prun Caresse (17), Framboise Exquise (18), Sienne Kiss (19), Rouge Soyeux (20), Brun Auburn (21), Peche Voluptueuse (22). 

My experience with Bourjois Levres Contour Lip Liners: 

Enjoleuse (11) is french for ‘coaxing’. The shade is a gorgeous light pink color having neutral undertones. I love light pink colors, especially those that suit me. Enjoleuse suits my very warm & yellow skintone. Its almost a nude pink, it will be an everyday pink on fairer skintones. Somehow, it is an everyday pink on my medium skintone (I’m NC42 in MAC Pro Long Wear), however I’ve seen it look like nude on people having same skintone as me! I guess the color will depend varying on your undertone. I’ve seen Enjoleuse being described as a pink-brown but honestly, I can’t see any brown to it! Just look at the swatches and tell me if I’m missing the brown tinge! I like to use this shade under nude & everyday suitable lipsticks (like MLBBs, soft pinks).

 Enjoleuse is very pigmented & covers lip pigmentation, however, it is also very matte. My lips need to be exfoliated or at least moisturized and unchapped prior to its use. If worn alone, it feels very dry & emphasizes dryness on lips unless you moisturize them beforehand. Despite of its matte texture, it applies smoothly. 

Now, for the true test….. Enjoleuse does make my lipsticks last longer, it also prevents them from feathering, however it does not control transfer :/ I’m not sure if lip liners are supposed to do that but if I wear a very creamy lipstick (like the Revlon Colorburst lipsticks) it lasts for a longer time over Enjoleuse but it does transfer everywhere. The lipsticks I wear over Enjoleuse wear off from the center of my bottom lip with water & snacks however the lip liner stays in place. You do need to touch up after meals, especially if you eat oily food. I wore this lip liner alone for my graduation day for about 5-6 hours and I was impressed by its performance, it did not feel uncomfortable because I had moisturised my lips with the Carmex lip balm beforehand. It wore off from a bit from my bottom lip when I had sweets (coz they are oily!).

Rouge Soyeux (20) is french for ‘silky red’, what a great name!

I bought this shade, only because it’s a dupe of MAC Ruby Woo (thanks to Cynthia of Indian Vanity Case for the info!). Ruby Woo lipstick is supposed to be a must-have but I can’t bring myself to splurge on a shade I will rarely wear, so enter Rouge Soyeux (20), a bright pinky-red with a subtle blue undertone. Unlike Enjoleuse, Rouge Soyeux does not apply smoothly, infact it feels dry like a crayon and its tip needs to be sharpened to a fine point so that you can apply the color with ease. It is drying to wear but so is Ruby Woo I hear! 

I haven’t tested this one out much because I rarely wear reds, but if you want a Ruby Woo dupe for cheap, make sure you buy lip liner Rouge Soyeux (20) and NOT Rouge Seduction (14)  {which doesn’t seem like a blue toned red}. Check out Cynthia’s post here. I also think its important to have a lip liner for such bright colors because it makes applying lipstick much easier!

Swatches:

Price Vs Product:
Price: Rs.295 / $4.64 each

Qty: 1.12g /  0.03 oz.

Availability : Koovs | Nykaa | Amazon | Flipkart (on sale here)

Cons: They need to be sharpened! This leads to A LOT of wastage, you’ll need to buy the lip liner every month if you use it regularly. Given the dry texture of the lip liners, I feel that a wooden pencil form is the best because if it was a twist-up style, the lip liner would keep breaking off whenever you tried to apply it. Bourjois products are not sealed & SAs in India just open up the fresh products :/

Overall Verdict: 5/5

Yes they are drying, but that’s what makes them long lasting! For the price, I can’t complain much, I plan to buy at least one more shade and backups of the shades in my collection coz I love the colors! They are available in lots of colors and you’ll surely find something to love in the collection!

 

Bourjois 123 Perfect CC Cream '34 Bronze' Review - Foundation or Tinted Moisturizer ?

I never thought I’d spend so much on a tinted moisturizer, but I did! It was on my mind, haunting me for so long that I just gave in one day. It all started when I ventured into Parcos at Infinity-2 one day(that day I talked about HERE). I actually wanted to try out the newly launched cream-to-powder shadows by Bourjois, but they weren't stocked (I doubt if they are available even now). Then, I saw the CC cream and decided to try it out. ‘I won’t really buy it anyways’, I thought to myself, ‘too expensive’. After finding a shade close to my skin tone, I patted the tester on to my skin and I just fell in love with the texture and coverage. The store had my shade only in testers so I couldn't buy it then and I thought ‘this is a sign, I shouldn't buy it now, or ever’. But then, the pangs began. I started to dream about it, in the different ways it could be of use to me, how it would be perfect for this season and that occasion, and blah blah. When you really like something, your subconscious conspires to fixate on it, and clouds all your thoughts with images of it. So I gave in, and brought it home with me. ^_^

Price; Rs.710 / $11.4

Qty: 30ml / 1 US oz
Shades : 31 Ivory , 32 Light Beige , 33 Rose Beige, 34 Bronze

My Summer Most Used Makeup Products & Favorites...!

This summer I had a lot of fun experimenting with color, my favorites were bright pink, turquoise and yellow. Summers are very humid in Mumbai and the first time I wore a full face of makeup, I was sweating so much, it felt like my face was melting off. There after I decided to go light on base makeup and I’ve just been experimenting to see what works will in the heat, unfortunately sans primer, nothing works for more than 2 hours. Anyways, here’s my most worn makeup for this summer, not all are favourites though, I’ve added my thoughts on each product so you know how I feel about them. This is a picture heave post, hope you enjoy it!

You can also check out My Summer Skincare+Tips Post .

I loved using the Rimmel Liquid Cheek Tints because they were quick and fuss free and as long as I’m in ac they last for nearly 5 hours. The Cheeky Glow blush in Fresh Coral is a beautiful pink shade that suits all the pink lipsticks I wore this season. It does have a hint of coral but is mostly a nice brightening pink blush for me. 

(Clockwise from top) Sleek Antique, Rimmel Sunkissed Cherry, Maybelline Fresh Coral, Rimmel Pop of Pink

The Sleek Limited Edition Antique blush is the only disappointing one of the lot, though it looks good it pictures, it has glitter that can travel across your cheek area. However it gives a glowy look to the face and can be used to fake a glow in pictures.

My Fall-Winter Makeup products & More..– Most used products.

*UPDATE: mybeautyexpress is now crazybeautyland.blogspot.com

Opps...Its been so long since I posted. I'm back in my college now, hence there was a huge delay in publishing posts; I'm dependent on college wifi...sigh. It was really frustrating to write posts and edit pictures but never get a chance to publish them!! But anyways, continuing with the fall-winter skincare that I had done last week, here’s all the makeup I've been enjoying for winter.

Starting with the eye make up:

Maybelline The Falsies Mascara: Its a great mascara, especially for my bottom lashes. Definitely false lash effect! Too dramatic to wear it to college though, but perfect for parties and otherwise.

Maybelline Color Tattoo in Tough as Taupe (Review here):

Its a lovely grey color, has certain lilac tones underneath. Its a good color for fall, I use it as a base for brown colors to make them more taupe-y. On some days I use it as it as with just a black liner and mascara.

Bourjois Ombre Stretch eye shadow in Flexi Brown:

Its a lovely brown color perfect for fall and winters, I love the gold flecks it has. However, I get a decent color pay off only when I use it wet.

Inglot round eye shadow refills in 463DS, 418P, 378M :

(From my Inglot Palette) They are the only neutrals I got from Inglot and I'm loving them. 463DS is perfect for highlighting, 418P is an amazing green color and 378M is dark brown color which is a must have for me.

Faces Single eye shadows in FES00064 and FES00232:

I love FES00064(pale pink one), its a "my lids but better" color for me, some times I use it just to give a wash of color on my lids, some times I use it as a blending color. I also mix both of these to get a nice soft brown color for blending in black smokey eye looks. 

Lakme Eyeconic Kajal in Black:

This one is a recent purchase and I'm loving it! It has got so many reviews already so I won't be reviewing it on my blog. Its a great kajal and liner, I apply it on my upper lash line and then smudge it to get a smokey look.

Maybelline Hypersharp Liner: 

Thanks to this, I'm able to draw on a cat eyeliner and winged liner which I wasn't able to do earlier with gel liner and pencil. Now I can draw them by pencil as well, I’m yet to try with my maybelline gel liner, but its all dried up and using a liquid liner is sooo easy!

My favorite smudging & eye makeup brush ~ Bourjois Double Ended Applicator - Review, Photos, Price

You know, I'm not crazy into make up(yet), its just the stage of testing waters, so to speak. Since I can't wear make up on a daily basis to college, I'm constantly on the look out for pocket-friendly quality products. Moreover, I'm not an earner, till then, I want(read: try) to spend(read: waste) as little of my parents money as possible, on my vanity.
Make up brushes are important and there are really good quality brushes available at reasonable rates, but not in India, still that doesn't justify that I should spend four grand on a brush set from a high end brand when I can definitely find a dupe in a drugstore brand. Trust me, its all there, you just have to search for it. And when you find such a product, you know that you have gotten lucky.

Speaking of getting lucky, well.. I did! I found this amazing brush!

*UPDATE: mybeautyexpress is now crazybeautyland.blogspot.com

Bourjois Professional Double Ended Applicator

Cost:- Rs.150 (How many of you don't believe me? Yep, thought so!)
I think its price may have increased to Rs.185/- now, not sure though, but that's still cheap!