Review: Shu Uemura The Lightbulb Foundation

Hi guys!

I have been using the Shu Uemura Lightbulb Foundation with SPF30 for quite some time and I am ready to write a thorough review! 

I had to mix a darker foundation with this because it is slightly lighter than my skin tone. However, recently, it matches my skin perfectly because it's winter and my skin just gets super light during winter.

Firstly, it comes with a sponge, which, like the name suggests, is shaped like a lightbulb. You can use the wider surface area to apply all over the face or use the tip to get a more precise application. I like to use the sponge damp, but I have read somewhere that you do not need to use this sponge damp. Nowadays, I tend not to use the Lightbulb sponge just because it seems to take a much longer time for me to clean it using my sponge detergent as compared to using a normal sponge I got from drugstores. On the other hand, when I use sponges that are not round and have edges, it does take a longer time to blend the foundation out because it tends to be a little streaky. I have not had this experience with other foundations though.

As for the foundation shade range, there is a wide variety of cool tone and warm tone shades, and I use yellow-based foundations. The shade I have is 764 Medium Light Beige but it is still lighter than my skin tone during the summer, and so I like to mix it in with a small amount of my darker foundation, which is the Benefit Hello Flawless Oxygen Foundation in Beige. But as I am writing this in the winter, it matches my skin tone perfectly.

Photo from http://evonnz.com/2013/09/shu-uemura-the-lightbulb-fluid-foundation/

I got my Lightbulb Foundation at the Narita Duty Free Store, and the lady there was extremely helpful and she helped me find my closest shade. When my skin wasn't extremely fair, I was slightly too dark for the shade that I am using, but also slightly too light for the next shade.

Now to the texture and finish of the foundation. I feel that this foundation is a medium coverage foundation but you can build it up easily. In my opinion, the Lightbulb Foundation has AMAZING coverage even though it has a thinner consistency. I only use one layer and then go in with a concealer to cover up darker blemishes.

I'm not sure why, but I feel like the foundation looks different on my skin when I had to mix in a darker foundation and when I didn't have to. When this foundation was too dark and when I mixed in my darker foundation, it was extremely lightweight and it looked really like skin! I have gotten away with this foundation with people thinking that I have nice, flawless skin (even when I don’t). This foundation also gave a really nice glow to your skin, and it made me look healthy.

However, during the winter and when my skin tone is perfect for this foundation, I felt that it didn't look as "skin-like". Another thing I have noticed is that the foundation does tend to start breaking down when I've worn it for around 8 hours, especially around and on my nose. Also, since I have dry skin, this foundation seems to cling onto any dry spots I may have.

Overall, I'm not sure if it's just because my skin isn't as hydrated during winter, or it's because the formula of my darker foundation changed the way this foundation looked. This is just something for you to keep in mind.

I will now talk about the wear of the foundation. I don’t know what it is, but with some foundations, I almost always get a foundation crease in my smile lines and it makes me look so old when I’m only a young adult. With the Lightbulb Foundation, I still see some creasing. I have also tried applying this on my dark circles and I am sad to say that it almost instantly starts creasing.

Onto the packaging and price. The foundation comes in a glass bottle with a pump and it looks really sleek, so there’s nothing much I can complain about. For the price, it is a higher end foundation and it costs around $50USD. It may be slightly cheaper in Japan, but I don’t know for sure.

So would I repurchase this? I must say that this foundation is pretty nice and it’s one of the best foundations I have used, but I am just ambivalent on how the foundation looks different during summer and winter. I will continue searching for similar foundations that match my skin tone perfectly when my skin isn't unnaturally light during the winter. However, if you find a shade that matches you, I do encourage you to try it out. I’ve heard great things about it, tried it myself, and overall, I think it is worth the price you pay. 

I hope that my review was helpful. Let me know if you have any other questions in the comments! Thank you for reading :)

Review: Empties (Summer 2015)

Hi guys!

It's been a really long time since I wrote a review and I'm sorry about that! I've been really busy with senior year and finals are approaching, but I'm taking a break from studying right now :)

Even though this may be a little late, I have a lot of products that I have finished using over the summer and I'd like to share them with you.

The first product I emptied is the warm vanilla sugar body lotion from Bath and Body Works. I really enjoyed using this because my skin feels so soft after using this, the lotion is moisturizing, and it has a nice scent and does not smell like plastic in any way. This is perfect during fall and winter time but I would use it in the summer anyway.

The next product I finished using is the Vanilla Bean Noel Body Cream from Bath and Body Works. This is slightly thicker than the body lotion but the formula would be more suitable especially for harsh winters. I do however like the previous scent more. Some vanilla scents (like this one) may smell like plastic and can give me a headache.

The third product I would like to share with you is that Bobbi Brown Long-Wear Even Finish Foundation with SPF 15. I have this in 2.5 Warm Sand and this is actually the first foundation that I have used which matches my skin tone perfectly. I got this last summer at Sephora after doing a Color IQ match (which I highly recommend because it identifies products from all brands in the perfect shade for you so that you don't have to go around testing them yourself). I have already repurchased this and I will do an in-depth review on this in the future.

Another product that I emptied is the Mac Prep and Prime Transparent Finishing Powder, which is a loose powder. This setting powder is absolutely gorgeous and it is completely transparent. It is also extremely mattifying. This is my favorite setting powder so far. As of right now, I have already finished using two of this, which really goes to show how much I love this. I will definitely do an in-depth review on this too.

Another product I finished using is the Not Your Mother's Clean Freak Refreshing Dry Shampoo. I'll be writing a review soon because I also really enjoyed using this.

I finished another bottle of the SANA Nameraka Honpo Soy Milk Isoflavone Moisturizing Milky Lotion Emulsion and I have always enjoyed using this moisturizer. Although it is pretty thin, it is still moisturizing enough during the winter. I had written a review on this, and you can read it here.

I also used up a Warm Vanilla Sugar Gentle Foaming Hand Soap from Bath and Body Works. I really like this hand soap and I have a few other bottles that are sitting on my shelf. I am looking forward to using them soon.

The next product I finished using is the Innisfree Apple Juicy Cleansing Oil. This was the second time I've used this. Overall, I really like this makeup remover and the apple scent is very pleasant. I still have a number of makeup remover that I have not used so I'm looking forward to trying other ones out. In case you're wondering, this is a previous empties post that also features this product: click here.

This is the Neutrogena Oil-Free Acne Wash that I have used up. This was my first time trying out this product and I felt that it was alright. It definitely did not prevent acne from appearing but I wasn't disappointed since I did not have such high hopes for it. I'll probably be using other face washes from now on just because my mom bought back a number of them from Japan.

I finished using the Schwarzkopf Extra Care Shea Cashmere Intensive Hair Mask, which I actually used as a conditioner. Someone gifted this to my mom but she did not want to use it and so she gave it to me. There are also Chinese characters on it just because that person bought it in China. Overall, I felt that this was not bad and it made my hair rather moisturized but the smell was slightly too strong for me.

The last products I emptied are the Tsubaki Shining Shampoo and Conditioner. These are really popular products from Japan and I seriously really enjoyed using them! The shampoo was extremely foamy and the conditioner is probably the best I have ever used; it made my hair extremely soft and moisturized. I would definitely repurchase this in the future. If you are interested, you can check out my Japan haul here.

That is all I have! That was a lot of empties... Thank you for reading and I hope you found this post useful. See you guys :)

Previous empties posts:
Winter 2013
Winter 2013-2014
Summer & Fall 2014

Review: NYX Mega Shine Lip Gloss

Hi guys!

Recently, I've been using this lip gloss way too often and it has been my go to lip product for a long time. So, I would like to share this with you!

This is the NYX Mega Lip Gloss in LG 122 Natural. I really like this lip gloss because it looks very natural (as the name suggests) on the lips. I consider this as a my lips but better lip gloss. This is my go to lip gloss for school because it makes me look livelier without having to put in much effort, and the best thing is that people can't even tell I am wearing lip gloss.

This lipstick does not leave a sticky feeling, which is always nice. The only downside to this product in my opinion is the "calcium tablet" smell that it has. It's very hard for me to describe it, but there is a noticeable smell to this product. If you don't mind the scent, this will be all right for you. Overall though, I still really like this product.

Here is a swatch and some pictures of how it looks on my lips in different lightings. As you can tell from the swatch, the product is fairly pigmented.

I just realized that the lip gloss is manufactured in China, which isn't the best place to make beauty products. I do really enjoy this product, but I know there are many nude lip glosses out there so I'll probably look for something else in the future.

I hope you found this review helpful, and thank you for reading :)

Summer DIY

Hey guys!

Summer is almost over :(

I decided to spend some time to do a little DIY. I have to mention that even though I love photography and I love the arts, I’m not THAT good at DIY. That’s why I like to keep things simple, but it’s also partly because I don’t have a lot of fancy materials to begin with. HAHA.

I have 4 DIY projects to share with you, all of which I got inspiration from somewhere else like Pinterest or Youtube. All of these are SUPER easy, so feel free to recreate these projects.

Mood DIY

Using emojis I found on the Internet, I made a Mood decoration for my wall. Basically, I found emojis that represented what I feel the most often and every day, according to my mood, I will hang one up.

1. I used different colored paper (Blue for Mood, and a cut out from a notebook I finished using) so that it looks slightly nicer.

2. I also found a clothes peg that had a tiny heart on it, so I decided to make that the peg for the mood.

3. For the other pegs, I painted them with nail polishes which I do not use very often. However, these nail polishes were still fairly opaque so that I did not have to paint over the pegs numerous times.

4. I printed and cut out the emojis. Since I had rather limited space, I clipped 2 or 3 emojis together.

And that’s literally it.

Table organizer DIY

I made a small table organizer for paper and pens using cereal boxes and toilet rolls.

1. Firstly, I drew out the shape I wanted using a sharpie and I cut out the shape.

2. Using the cut out, I traced it on the other side of the box and continued cutting.

3. For the other box, I just cut it so that it’s the same height as the toilet rolls.

4. I painted all the boxes and toilet rolls with acrylic and let it dry.

5. Lastly, I glued the toilet rolls onto the box.

This is a great way to recycle materials into something simple but useful!

Photo frame decoration

The title may be misleading because I did not decorate the actual photo frame, but I used printed photos to decorate my room. All I did was print photos and put them into the frames. I feel like it’s such a simple DIY but it made such a difference to my room. 

Accessories organizer DIY

Using a shoe box, I made a DIY organizer for some of my jewelry.

1. I found lots of boxes that were empty and also 2 toilet rolls that I used up.

2. For the toilet rolls, I decided to wrap colored paper around them instead of painting them because I found in the previous DIY that the paint did not end up as opaque as I hoped it would.

3. Lastly, I glued all the items onto the shoe box.

On a side note, I like keeping my necklaces in tiny plastic bags so that they don’t get tangled.

This DIY is seriously so easy and it can really help to keep all your small items in one place so that you will reach for them more often. I have hair bows, rings, bracelets and necklaces here but you can definitely sort other stuff by your preference.

That is all I have for now! I have a lot of DIY projects I would like to try, but I just have so little time for them. I promise to try out more DIY projects when I’m all done with college apps. Thank you for reading :)

Boston Summer Haul 2015

Hi guys!

It’s been a long time once again. Thank goodness it’s finally summer and I have found some time to blog. Unfortunately, I will be away for quite some time after summer ends since it’s senior year and I have to deal with college apps and crazy school schedules. BUT fear not, when second semester comes, I will have a lot more time to blog :)

I’d like to share with you the new beauty products I got in Boston this summer. 

Firstly, I went to Bath and Body Works and picked up 3 items. Actually, I will only be using one of them which is the Sweet Cinnamon Pumpkin Shower Gel since I gave the Fresh Brazil Citrus Shower Gel to my brother and the Cool Amazon Rain Body Lotion to my best friend, Sandra. She smelt it and she really liked it and it’s relatively new so thumbs up to that!

These are all the beauty products that I got. I did not go cray this time since I didn't have a lot of space in my luggage, but I didn't need a lot more makeup to start with. I still like being frugal and I tend not to buy too many things because all makeup have expiry dates.

Finally, I found the Elizabeth & James Nirvana White EDP. I really liked it and since I’ve been eyeing it for a long time, I decided to get it. I also took a whiff of the Nirvana Black perfume, which I thought I would like more since I like more “masculine” scents if that makes any sense, but I felt that it was too intense and I didn’t really enjoy it. I am not going to use the Nirvana White for now since I’d like to use up more of the older perfumes I have. 

I also got the MAC Studio Finish Concealer with SPF 35 in NC30. I previously had one in NC20 two years ago but it was way too light for me (However, I did feel like it has oxidized and the shade is slightly darker now). Anyway, I like this because it is really creamy and creamy concealers tend to give me better coverage compared to liquid concealers. On the other hand, I do know that this is a more drying concealer, which may not be ideal for my dry skin especially in the winter but I will see how it goes. My all time favorite concealer will still have to be the Make Up Forever Full Cover Concealer, which I use in my undereye area but I don’t think there’s a shade that fits me perfectly for my face. I will probably write a review on this MAC Studio Finish Concealer in detail in the future.

I wanted to get a drugstore foundation and I saw a wide variety of shades in the Maybelline Fit Me (Dewy + Smooth) Foundation. I have it in the shade 210 Sandy Beige and I thought it would be a pretty good match just by eyeballing the bottle but it is still darker than my natural skin tone. That's the thing I hate about drugstore makeup: you can't test it. I’ve been trying this out and I will write a more in depth review about this in the future. 

I also got another Maybelline Fit Me Concealer in 20 Sand since it's a pretty good match for my skin tone. Overall, I think this is a nice drugstore concealer since it's decent quality, but sometimes I don't find it as full coverage as I hope it will be since it has a more liquid consistency.

I am a lipstick junkie and of course, I had to try out the Maybelline Color Sensational Matte Lipsticks. After looking at swatches on Youtube, I narrowed it down to 2 lipstick shades I like and they are Daringly Nude and Touch of Spice. I also have not tried it on yet since I want to try using up some older lipsticks.

Touch of Spice

Daringly Nude

I also got a Wet ‘n’ Wild Mega Last Lipstick in 908C Sugar Plum Fairy. I’m really into dark lip colors which is why I decided to pick this up. 

I got a Wet 'n' Wild Color Icon Eyeshadow palette called Comfort Zone. I know Wet n Wild palettes are extremely inexpensive for the number of shades you get and they are fairly pigmented as well. I'm looking forward to trying this out! 

Another eye product that I got is the L'Oréal Infallible Gel Lacquer Liner 24 Hour in Blackest Black. I heard a lot of good reviews on Youtube and I was glad that it came with a brush, even though I am not sure if the brush is any good. Since I still have my MAC Fluidline Eyeliner Gel in Blacktrack, which I have had for almost 2 years, I am not going to use the L'Oréal Infallible Gel Liner anytime soon because I don’t use eyeliners that often and I’m afraid my MAC one will dry up. 

I don’t have a lot of hair products, and since I’ve been hearing good reviews on the L'Oréal Elnett Satin Extra Strong Hold Hair Spray, I gave it a shot. I have it in the unscented version and I have not tried it yet but I am going to do so the next time I curl my hair.

Another hair product I got is the L'Oréal Paris EverCurl Hydracharge Conditioner. I have CRAZY dry hair and so I’m always on the lookout for better conditioners. I just realized I think I wanted to get the Everstrong Reconstruct Conditioner but got them mixed up since they both have a green packaging. This conditioner says it is for wavy to curly hair, which I don’t have, but I guess it should work the same if I have straight hair. Recently, I finished using up the Shiseido Tsubaki Shining Conditioner, which I felt was pretty nourishing. I think I am going to do an empties post soon since I recently finished A LOT of products. 

That will be all I have for now! I will be writing reviews and an empties post soon so please check them out! Thank you so much for reading :)