Colour me cute!

Dear fellow bloggers, dear (8) followers, I hope you had a lovely Christmas and will be spending a lovely New Year as well! I have been lazy on updates again, I know, and I'm really sorry, but I was busy. Yeah, that's what they all say. :( Plus, every time I say, write or even just think my skin finally looks better, I get the most horrible breakout! >.< Anyway, I bought some beauty items lately (as gifts to myself, hehe) which I will review when I get them. Even managed to find two dicontinued shades of Majolica Majorca single eyeshadows I've been wanting (light green and aqua blue) and the Lavshuca Dual Prism Eyes in PU-1. Now all I still want is the Color Select quad in PU-1 (I already have PU-2, which replaced PU-1 last year, I think, but I want the older purple one anyway.) If anyone wants to sell theirs, let me know! ;) I do have one eye of the day pic for you from last week, when I really wanted something springish to counteract the coldness and snow he...

Finally a picture of my face! (Finally, she says. *cough*) My skin still looks awful, but better than it did last month. I've been doing dead sea salt masks every other night - they burn like hell, but they're good for your skin. At least I can see an improvement. On the alternate nights, I've been doing sheet masks (Kosé Clearturn ones) which I shall review some other time. And now, pictures! (click to enlarge) The pictures look a bit redder than I do in real life, don't ask me why. Strange lightning, I guess. And please ignore my strange expression, it's hard to find the right angle for pictures. ^^; I was wearing: face: - Missha Perfect Cover M BB Cream in #13 - Alverde Concealer stick with tea tree oil in #01 - Rimmel Stay Matte powder (I forgot the #, but it is the lightest one available, although unfortunately, it has a bit of a yellow tinge. Plus, as much as I like how it really keeps my face matte (I don't know why I look shiny in the pictures...

Hello! :) You were probably waiting for make-up pictures, but all I can upload for now are nail pics. My brother helped me with getting some stuff from our Mum's camera and my cellphone on my USB, and he is also my new official nail art photographer now. xD Kiko nail polish in 298 and the limited Anna Sui nail polish I bought in Japan in 108 p2 nail polish in 320 (turquoise) and Catrice nail polish in 270 (dark blue) with the Anna Sui polish to blur the line in the middle of the nail Wow, the picture quality still sucks. ^^; Kiko is an Italian brand with some stores in Berlin - I've been buying several of their nail polishes lately, as they're really good quality and only 3,90€. <3 p2 and Catrice are German drugstore brands, really cheap, with p2 polishes at 1,55€ and Catrice at 2,55€. Unlike Kiko, they don't have as many bright and shimmery colours, though, but still, good colour choice and quality for a very small price! As you can see, I really lov...

I promise I will update soon. Really, I am very sorry, but university is stressful, and my computer, camera etc. aren't working the way I need them to. I do have many pictures taken, though. In the meantime, you might want to take a look at this blog full with beautiful nail designs, my favourite being this one .

Japanese-speaking readers can find me at cosme.net now: http://my.cosme.net/open_top/show/user_id/2166688 If you are also on cosme.net, please add me as a friend! :) よろしくお願いします。m(_ _)m

Some of you might remember by love for Ichikami's hair products. I was really sad I couldn't take any of them home. :( I thought about it, but my luggage was very heavy already and if I ran out of it, I would have to reorder again... Well, the next time I'll be in Japan! Anyway, as I was standing in front of the Ichikami counter/corner at my local pharmacy, I thought: "Hm, that model looks like Kouda Kumi, just less flashy." Turns out it was her! I stopped following her music ages ago - not because of the bad joke incident after which she lost her contract with Visée, but because I didn't like her style and singing anymore. But I'm glad to see she got a new cosmetics deal, and I still like her enough to be happy about her promoting my favourite hair products! :) On a side note, I need to apologize for not posting reviews for a while. Getting my skin under control is my biggest concern at the moment, and I want to present all the make-up I still...

As I mentioned before, I have purchased the trial set for Sekkisei (to celebrate their 25th Anniversary) last week and have been using it since then, together with another Kosé moisturizer (that smells the same as Sekkisei and is also said to have whitening effects.) I have also been using their sun lotion since late March and just started my second bottle a little while ago. When I googled for Sekkisei's ingredient's, I came across this very handy site: Sun lotion ingredients and their level of irritation and comedogenic effects I didn't get any more acne from it, as the comedogenic levels are only 2, and also no irritation despite it having some level 4 ingredients. Lucky! I also typed in the lotion and the emulsion . So far, it feels like my skin is getting better from the use of the products. My skin got some pimples, which rarely happens, but maybe that's because the cream is too thick for my oily t-zone, or maybe because both lotion and emulsion contain ...

My skin has been looking awful lately, so I went to the local drugstore and had a very nice lady help me a lot. (Well, actually I went there to get some stuff a friend wanted and to stock up for the last time, as tomorrow is my last day in Japan - for a while. Definitely coming back!) I'm one of those people who get break-outs on their cheeks and chin area, which the nice lady said is stress and hormones. She measured my skin's hydration level again and it was very low this time. I probably over-cleaned my skin when the first pimple showed up some weeks ago, and didn't moisturize properly because the last check showed I was fine without using moisturizer. Uh, well. Actually, this describes my skin's state pretty well, and also sums up what the lady at the counter said. After like half an hour of discussing matters with the SA and fighting with myself, I bought the Sekkisei 25th Anniversary trial kit and a Kosé moisturizer that smells nearly the same as Sekkisei do...

In Japan, I often seen girls or women doing their make-up on the train. It's kind of interesting because I like to see what kind of techniques other people use. When I went back from an overnight trip, my friends and me were pretty bored on the long train ride, and I had the crazy, er, glorious idea to re-apply my make-up on the train. I've never done that before and probably will never do it again, but it was fun. For some reason, it is considered bad manners to apply make-up on the train, so the Tokyo Metro launched this some time ago: In many public restrooms here, there are also extra mirrors so you won't block the sinks while doing your hair or make-up. Even at my university! O.o Some people also apply their make-up in the car, I've heard. Seems a bit dangerous to me... ^^; Do you apply your make-up at outside of yor home or bathrooms?

I used Lavshuca's Eye Color Select palette in Br-1, blusher/highlighter duo in RD-2 and Liquid Rouge in RD-1. Also the loose powder Lucent on one side of my face - I powdered the other half with my usual Majolica Majorca powder to see if there's a difference. Time will tell. My base was the Missha Signature BB Cream sample in #21 I reviewed in the post before this. Also, I filled in my eyebrows with a no-name powder, put black gel-liner by Kate on my upper waterline and white My Color Pencil in white, also by Kate, on my lower waterline. And my beloved Majolica Majorca Lash Gorgeous Wing Neo, of course. It looks like my cell phone camera has a tendency to tone down red in pictures. The liquid rouge looks redder in real life, my blush disappeared in the picture (I didn't apply that much to begin with, though - living in Japan doesn't mean imitating their way of applying blusher.) Also, my hair started turning red. O.o I tolf you before that I got it dyed, and some ...

When I bought my blue eyeshadow I still haven't reviewed at the Missha counter in a Shinjuku department store, I got some free samples, one of them the Signature BB Cream in #21. Yes, the first time I got a bright colour that actually fits my face! Usually, both in Germany and in Japan, I get foundation samples that are waaaaaaaaaaaay too dark (and yellow) for me. Is there only one colour for samples or is there a purpose behind giving me the wrong colour? (I know there are some "make-up experts" that give you darker colours on purpose to make you look "more healthy". Um, sure.) Anyway, I just tried the sample and from the first use, I almost like it better than the Perfect Cover one that I used until now! It's not as thick, so it spreads more easily, and it also looks a bit more natural. It lacks the strong fragrance, which might be a plus for people who don't like the other one's smell or react to fragrance. I know you can't judge from samp...

When I headed to another drugstore than my usual one, I found the new eyeshadows from Integrate's fall collection that will be out for sale on the 21st on display! Same for Coffret d'Or's C Curve two limited palettes - the purple one looked rather lovely, the taupe/nude one a bit muddy. Same for Integrate - I had wanted the green, but the colour barely showed when I swatched it on my arm. And my arm is white as snow! O.o The purple here looked lovely, too, the middle shade reminded me of the Aube eyeshadow I have. Four or five palettes were brownish, two were pink and one was grey. I can't pull of pink on my eyes (which is too bad, as they're heart-shaped, so pink would be perfect), I don't like grey and I already have a nude/brown/golden palette from Lavshuca. Still, as I really want one of these, I might go for a light brown. This also means I need to find another green palette - maybe Majolica Majorca, as they have a deeper green. Sorry I didn't do ...

Today was another double point day at my local drugstore, which I decided to use for a little (ha!) shopping spree. I also dragged a friend along so I would get the points for her stuff, too. I got some more eye shadow palettes (the last ones, I swear, Mum! Okay, only one more, the Integrate heart-shaped ones aren't out yet.) finally the loose Lavshuca powder PJ has been raving about and also my very first lipstick! Yes, I never owned a real lipstick before, just gloss. There was an Avon lipstick I reviewed a tiny sample of a while ago and sometimes used it, but it's long gone by now. Maybe I should purchase a full size? Anyway, expect more reviews soon! I am trying to slow down my review pace a bit, because a) I am leaving Japan on September 1st, which means I can't buy Japanese cosmetics anymore unless I order them online, which is more expensive and also makes pre-purchase swatching and applying impossible and b) as I am leaving soon, I figured I shouldn't han...

To be honest, I was a bit anxious when I heard that Lash Gorgeous Wing would be replaced with LGW Neo. As I have written before, LGW is my favourite mascara so far, because it is the first one that doesn't clump on me or looks overly dramatic. It just makes my lashes look natural, only better. Here is a pic of my lashes without any mascara. (I just put a bit of black eyeliner on my upper waterline.) no mascara As you can see, they're pretty long, but the ends need some black colour. (My head looks really weird like this, like the shape of an alien's head?!) An old pic of my eye with LGW (from an old Visée eyeshadow review): wearing Lash Gorgeous Wing mascara And now a new pic with me wearing LGW Neo (the pic belongs to an upcoming review of an eyeshadow): wearing Lash Gorgeous Wing Neo As you can see, there is - luckily! - not much of a difference. If Neo seems a bit blacker and fuller, it is probably because the mascara is new, whereas the old LGW has be...

... what would you buy? I think I would buy Sekkisei's Lotion and Cream, as the sample of the lotion I got really helps soothe my skin, and the cream could be the night time moisturizer I need. But Sekkisei's products are expensive... The sun lotion is still affordable, and a good sun lotion is worth the price, I'd say, but about 5.000 Yen for both the lotion and the cream, and buy new ones after 3 to 6 months (estimated)? Oh hell... >____< How about you?

I promised you a picture of my new hairstyle last week, remember? Well, here you go! Uwah, I look super tired in the light! I had it cut and also got a treatment, but unfortunately, my hair still looks very frizzy, despite using all the treatment, heat protection and just skipping blow-drying at all. :( Plus, I had it dyed in a really dark colour which looked nearly black on the first day, but now, it is nearly back to my old brownish hue, just looking a bit more reddish. Huh? I should have known that my hair is undyeable, but how this happened when the hair stylist really dyed it is incomprehensible to me. I took a pic with my webcam this time, but the quality isn't much better than my cell phone. The contrast is too high - I'm not that white! And you can't really see my eye make-up, can you? I used Majolica Majorca's single white shadow all over the lid and then Kate's Gel Liner in black, on which I dabbed Anna Sui's single eyeshadow in a glitterish bl...

Before I go back to Germany in September, there's some stuff I want to buy. - Integrate Rainbow Grade Eyes , probably in Green 707 (aren't those adorable?) - Anna Sui blue liquid eyeliner - one or two Lavshuca palettes (definitely one in brown, probably BR-1 of either Colour Select or Light Mix Eyes) - another eye shadow palette by Majolica Majorca, maybe a green one if the Integrate green palette doesn't turn out to be to my liking once I see it for real - a lipstick (to have at least on Japanese brand lipstick xD), probably Lavshuca Need to stock up on: - AHA Wash Cleansing - Majolica Majorca Lash Gorgeous Wing Mascara Neo - Majolica Majcora Powder that fits into my MM powder case - MM Jeweilling Eyes Pencil Eyeliner in Blue - maybe another rouge/highlighter from Lavshuca since those are perfect for carrying around I guess I can always have a friend send me my sun lotion and also the wash cleansing if I transfer money to them... Out of the two Kate My Co...

Before I bought this foundation, I should have read this . Too bad I didn't. I was thrilled to find a foundation bright enough for my super white skin - something nearly impossible in Japanese drugstores - well, in German drugstores, too. The foundation is indeed light enough for my complexion. It's just... When I first applied this, I saw ... nothing. And not nothing as in "OMG no more redness or pores or pimples!", but in "did I just halluzinate putting on foundation?" I didn't see a difference at all . I usually apply my foundation with my fingers, but when I stayed overnight at a friend's house, her applying foundation with a sponge reminded me of that possibility. It does look a bit better when applied with a sponge, but I don't like the application process. Takes too much time and buying a new sponge for every day is not very eco. As the review in the link says, maybe the other shade offer better coverage, as this is only the skin b...

- Lavshuca Light Mix Eyes in BR-1 - Majolica Majorca Lash Gorgeous Wing Neo and Jewelling Eyes in GR791 - Missha single eyeshadow in blue - Anna Sui liquid eyeliner in blue, new single eyeshadow in 102 (dark sparkly blue) - Kate Lasting High Coverage Liquid Foundation I will try to review all items in the next few weeks, but I'm in a kind of dilemma: I know you want the reviews fast, but if I review everything I got now, I won't have much left once I'm back in Germany. So please, leave a comment and tell me which review is the most urgent for you, and I will do that one first and the other ones later. :)

Some items caught my eyes on blogs or in stores lately, and I would like to share them here with you. Maybe, you can help me make a decision on what to get. :)  I will still definitely try the more expensive palettes on my eyes before I buy them, just to be safe. - Coffret D’Or Color Mixing Eyes in Lavender Purple Mix - Coffret d'Or Color Mixing Eyes in 02 Blue Green Mix  - got it! - Coffret d'Or Shine Accent Shine Accent Eyes 02 Pink Variaton - Lavshuca Melting Eyes BR-1 - Majolica Majorca Jewelling Eyes palettes, maybe GD886   - not my colours, plus I already got a golden palette from Lavshuca today - Maquillage Dual Glow Eyes BR275 - got it! - Kate Lasting High Coverage Powder Foundation PJ from A Touch of Blusher also really made me want Coffret d'Or 3D Lightning Eyes in Gold Variaton , but it seems to be discontinued and can't be found in drugstore or ebay. :( Edit: Found it, but it looked boring on my friend who tried it on, so I settled for Maquilla...

Dear readers, I know there aren't many of you yet, at least not according to my blog statistics, and I am sorry to bother you. Does anyone have a lipstick they can recommend to me? Preferably a Japanese brand, and also kind of affortable? I was thinking Lavshuca, because they look really pretty and wearable. Or if you don't have a recommendation, at least a "don't buy this!" comment would be helpful. What I want in a lipstick: - sheer finish, not matte. Also not too glittery. - a tone that brightens up my complexion. I have very fair skin with neutral to cool undertones, I'd say, so maybe some slightly blueish red or a light berry colour would be nice? - should look good with every day make-up. I'm not for dramatic lip looks all that much. - no real nudes or very light colours. I have naturally rosy lips, and I look really sick with them toned down or in a frosty pale pink etc. If someone could help me, I'd appreciate that a lot! Preferabl...

Yes, I'm on a blue trip. It's summer, so my love for this ocean and sky shade gets even bigger as I yearn for some refreshment... Anyway, I bought Majolica Majorca's new nail polish in BL501, a dark blue with minimal glitter. It looks darker in the bottle than on the nails. It also applies very unevenly, unfortunately. The colour is so pretty and looks so good on my white skin (yes, I never tan, not even in summer, and I also don't plan to), but  it's really runny and leaves streaks as well as colour beyond the actual nails. I applied it on both feet and hands, but I think I will keep it to my feet from now on, where the streaks aren't so visible. Too bad. :( Update: My feet still look perfect, but my nails chipped on the first day! I tried the colour as a tip colour for my usual blue/blue design, with the Maquillage glitter blue on top of it now:

I went on a shopping trip last week and bought several new items, including Coffret d'Or's new "Beauty C Curve Eyes" eyeshadow palette in 03 Monotone Blue. The reason why I decided to get it was because when I was at the hair salon, I read a magazine where they used this palette and a blue Anna Sui liner, which looked really nice and summery. I don't have the liner yet, but I will post pics of the complete eye look when I have it. As almost all Japanese eyeshadows, the colours are on the sheerer side, and they have lots of shimmer. I prefer this look to bold and matte colours, especially when it comes to blue, a colour that can easily look overdone if you aren't careful. Swatches can be seen here: The liner shade is pretty pigmented and dark, but when you use it close to the lashline, it looks really nice. The white "C Curve" is supposed to go around the outer corner of your eye to brighten it up, but I'm sure you can also use it in the i...

Dear readers, sorry for the long absence, but I really was very busy lately running around Japan. I will post pictures of my new haircut as soon as my skin likes me again, because at the moment, I look horrible. Probably due to the stress, I did get breakouts again, and my dark circles can't be covered anymore. I hope after my onsen (hot spring) trip tomorrow, I will look presentable again. I have good news for you, though! Since today was the double point day at my local drugstore, I got tons of new items to review for you! Including the new Coffret d'Or eye shadow palette! And also one limited Anna Sui nail polish! Look forward to my reviews!

Hello! :) It's been a while since my last post, sorry! I moved twice (!) this week and didn't have internet. But... I went to get my hair cut! And dyed! The first time I had my hair dyed at a salon. I tried semi-perment sometime, which didn't work, and then one of those blond sprays, which I don't recommend. Usually, I chopped my hair off pretty much every summer since middle school, but I kinda didn't last year. I had actually intended to let my hair grow and see how it looks, but the water here in Japan really kills it. >___ So I let the lady in the salon cut off everything until a bit above shoulder length, and also dye it a dark brown to hide the ugly yellowish tone my hair gets in summer. (I'm what wikipedia calls "golden brown", a colour I actually like, but the yellow, oh no!) I don't have any proper pics, but I will update you as soon as I have! I might also try some new make-up as the hair colour plays off my pale skintone really well. ...

Sorry, my English readers, but this is a German entry. Please forgive me just this once: Ich würde gern bei Zalando die Schuhflratrate gewinnen, da ich dieses Jahr durch meinen Uniaustausch ziemlich viel Geld ausgegeben habe und momentan nicht viel für Schuhe ausgeben kann. Außerdem würde ich gern meiner Mama zum Dank ein paar Schuhe schenken. Mein Favorit ist dieser hier: http://www.zalando.de/victoria-delef-peeptoe-azul-vi6-fzw-0052-99.html Wieso ich diesen Schuh mag? 1. Er ist blau, und ich liebe blau. 2. Er ist elegant, aber auch etwas extravagant, genau richtig, nachdem ich mich ein Jahr an japanische Mode gewöhnt habe. 3. Er hat einen Absatz, was für mich Zwerg gut ist, aber die Höhe ist noch zum Laufen geeignet. Sorry, English readers! But hey, isn't that shoe lovely?!

After I had worn my light and dark blue design for 10 days, I finally redid my nails. Again, I used the Maquillage dark blue polish for the tips, but left the rest of the nail clear and only added a turtle sticker to each pinky. The Maquillage polish, btw, stays on the nails really long, but the bottle is half empty already! Plus, it still looks transparent no matter how much I pile on - you have to dab it on and can't brush. I kinda don't see this on the whole nail, it just wouldn't work. Anyway, picture:

I had acne when I was a teenager. I openly admit that, because everything else is hypocritical and kind of stupid, because most of us probably had acne or at least a few breakouts. Well, I can easily admit that I am still getting breakouts from time to time now, and I still have red spots left on my face, which really pop because I'm so white, so I still have to wear foundation to get an even finish. (Although I am proud to say that yesterday morning, I went out without make-up for the first time in years. It was 7 in the morning, though, and I just went to the convenience store. ^^;) Wish me luck my skin will stay like that and the red spots will fade over time! Anyway, for those who are still fighting acne, be it as teens or adults, you might want to take a look at this blog and especially at the post I have linked to here: http://www.savvyskin.com/guide-to-cure-acne Click yourself through the site and the articles that are linked from this post and under the "acne" cat...

I am going to a hanabi (Japanese style firework) tonight, so I will put on the yukata I bought in Kyoto (well, let my friend put it on for me ^^;) and wear the furoshiki bag my students gave me yesterday. (What am I doing with my mouth?) I don't look that doll-like usually, my skin got enhanced by the flash and my eye shape by the make-up. xD Still blind from the flash light, btw. ^^;;; I used: face: - Missha M Perfect Cover BB Cream # 21 mixed with Sekkisei's sun lotion - Majolica Majorca Pore cover powder (transparent) - Lavshuca Mix Color Cheeks in RD-2 (maybe I need to put on some more?) eyes: - Majolica Majorca single eyeshadow WT963 on my whole eyelid and as a highlighter - Lavshuca Eye Select Color in blue, the colour on the bottom left - Majolica Majorca Jewelling Eye Pencil in blue on my lower lash line (not sure if it wouldn't have looked better without it?) - Kate Gel Eyeliner in black - Kate My Color Pencil in white on my lower waterline Not...

As I already wrote on Saturday, I have purchased two little trial bottles of a Sekkisei lotion. Unfortunately, the bottle doesn't say which one it is. ^^; (Or maybe that's just my Japanese, but it seriously only says Sekkisei on the front.) I am guessing it is this one, though: http://www.sekkisei.com/html_en/index.html I will try it out for some weeks and report the results to you guys. Just today, I also purchased DHC's moisture gel cream , because although I don't use night creams to let my skin breathe, lately I felt like I needed some. I applied the lotion/toner and then the cream and will see how my skin looks tomorrow morning. (Linked you to reviews at musingsofamuse.) I also purchased a trial pack of Dove's Washing foam and make-up remover (which is also a foam) and like it so far. Might change to the moisture one, though, if I finish this one. I try to use the AHA wash only once or twice a week now because unfortunately, when I wash my face with it, it re...

Remember my review of Visée's Blossom Eyes ? I used the palette to create an eye look for a little "party" (at noon ^^;) today. The middle pink does show up nicely when you layer it a bit and pat it on more than wipe. Overall, a subtle, but shimmery look that hoopefully distracts from my dark circles I simply cannot get away with sleep or concealer. Exams, be over soon! (Exam facts: 4 more days, 2 more reports, 3 exams, 1 presentation left.) Sorry for the quality again - I had to do it with my cell phone's flash because without it, my eyes just looked dark. This room's light really is no good, I can't even plug my eyebrows properly in here.

While I am watching an on-demand lesson on the internet, I decided to use the little nail stickers the store that sells pretty much everything in my area had on sale today and make my blue nails even more summer-ish. The stickers include palm trees and white turtles. If you didn't know it already, I love turtles! Anyway, here is a pic. Sorry for the quality, but the light isn't any good in my room. :( Do you use nail stickers? Do you have different designs according to the season?

Do you sometimes have cosmetic products where the smell appeals to you so much you wish you had it as a perfume? I really like Ichikami's shampoo and conditioner's smell. I also love Kose's Sekkisei's smell. And Missha's Perfect Cover BB Cream smells heavenly! ... In fact, it smells just like The Body Shop's Sakura fragrance. O_o That's right! I went down out shopping for a bit tonight after I had finished one of the bazillion reports I have to hand it, and I landed in a Body Shop store and tested the Sakura perfume just for fun. It reminded me of the fact that I had wanted to buy it ages ago, and when the inital smell faded a bit, it absolutely started smelling like the BB Cream! I will totally buy this when I'm back in Germany, just not now, because I already have enough stuff to carry home with the Japan-exclusive cosmetics. Do you have any product you'd wish the smell also came as perfume? Maybe not even cosmetics, maybe the smell of your favouri...

Uwah, I was so tired when I came home today I fell asleep with my make-up on! O_o Anyway, Fasio is having some new mascara and liner combination soon, and finally MatsuJun got a decent haircut in the CM! (In the last one, he looked like he had used the mascara on his hair. *cough*) Take a look here: http://www.kose.co.jp/jp/ja/products/brand/fasio/sp/#/makeup/ I like the last mascara they brought out, although I don't love it. Their eyeshadow is not working for me, but maybe that's only the one from the line I bought, and others are better. What do you think about it? Do you buy stuff because your favourite celebrity is in the commercial? Do you think guys advertising for women's cosmetics are... weird?

As I have written previously, I kinda have problematic skin. Dry, oily, breakout-prone... I was trying oil-free gel and mousse sunscreens last months, and I felt like my skin got oily in the process. Weird, huh? When I switched back to Sekkisei's sun lotion, the problem was gone pretty soon. although it is kind of rich. Weird? Just now, I was surfing A Touch of Blusher again, a great blog about (Japanese) cosmetics I check every day, and found this entry: http://atouchofblusher.blogspot.com/2007/05/redefining-skin-types.html If you are unsure about your skin type, take a look!

Contemplating my white and blue outfit and shoes today (the cutest shoes ever! I used a light blue polish by sweets and a dark blue polish from Maquillage, both with glitter. The Maquillage polish is a bit disappointing because despite looking dark in the bottle, I had to layer and layer before I got something more than glitter. Anyway, here is a picture. (Never mind my cuticles. >___ Btw, my two roleplays went well! The first one, the love story, seemed to be popular with the audience. (In fact, I had to "sh!" to the people in the classroom when he confessed his love to me. xD) Do you like to paint your nails? In more colours than one, and also "unusual" colours like blue?

I stopped by at the local drugstore today to reward myself for all the studying. Okay, I just wanted to take a look and then couldn't resist. But both Lavshuca and Majolica Majorca were 10% off. ^^; I purchased a palette by Lavshuca which PJ has already reviewed here , but I also made swatches. I wanted to take a picture of my wearing it, too, but my eyes look irritated today. (And I still have some vestiges of a huge zit my AHA wash healed. Why am I telling you guys this?) I still want a brown one and will probably buy BR-1 from either the same line or the other palette line that kinda looks like 4 wavy leaves. I also bought Majolica Majorca's single eyeshadow in WT963, a shimmery white, which I will use as a highlighter or just a quick wash of colour if I don't have time in the morning. It also looks nice togehter with the Jewelling Pencil in Blue that I bought. (I just have to figure out how to draw a fine line - I kinda suck at applying pencil liners.) Although I love t...

Rediscovered! My skin has been horribly lately, breaking out, being red and itchy... I don't know why, maybe the weather, maybe stress or a mix of both. Anyway, I simply couldn't get rid of some really stubborn zits on my chin (where I usually break out first), and last week, it spread out to my cheeks and forehead, and I knew something needed to be done. I used Dead Sea Salt peeling - no effect. AHA gentle peeling - no effect. Nose spray on the zits (yes, I was desperate) - of course, no effect. So I dug deeeeeeeeeeep into my closet and pulled out this one bottle of AHA Cleansing Research's (the one whose soap I use) Wash Cleansing. It is a chemical peeling due to the alpha hydroxy acids (AHA) in it, but also a mechanical one (i.e. has little scrubby things in it.) This was the best face peeling I ever had, but I never bought another bottle because I thought it was diccontinued. I searched for AHA Peeling frantically in every drugstore around and all I could see wa...

Sorry my promised review is late, but I have finals coming soon and my light and cell phone camera were being b*tches to me. Anyway, here it comes! My review of Aube's new eyeshadow palette in purple! The picture is still not perfect, but the best I could manage. :( The colours are more vibrant in reality, but the sparkle comes out pretty nicely. Here is a link to Aube's official website: http://www.sofina.co.jp/aube/ (Isn't Aibu Saki (right) pretty?) My shadow is the one the model on the left side is wearing. A picture of the palette (in all colours) can be seen here: http://www.sofina.co.jp/aube/products/product18.html The sparkly area on the left is the white base colour. I applied both the brighter and the darker lilac on it and on my naked skin (right side.) I think you can see a slight difference. The sparkle area on the right is the glitter pigment (the little dot in the palette.) It does sparkle quite a bit, but is still not overdone and makes you look like a disco ...

Wow, I have a row today! Just wanted to update you guys on some things I mentioned in earlier posts: 1. I still like Missha's BB cream a lot, but I feel like it's a bit too heavy for summer and makes my face look a bit shiny. So I guess since my skin has been looking better lately and I probably won't need full coverage anymore (yeah! Wish me luck it stays that way!!!), I might just switch to concealer and mineral powder once I get back to Germany. Why then? Because I'm having my eyes on a concealer and powder by some natural cosmetics brand from Germany. If you wanna check them out (do I actually have German readers?), they're called Alverde . I might use BB cream again in winter, I guess, or switch to Alverde's cream make -up. 2. As I said, my skin has been looking better lately. I still get nasty break-outs, probably due to the weather (Japan is really hot and humid >___ 3. I really do love Sekkisei's sun lotion, but it does get too heavy for me in sum...

Another eye shadow from Kosé I'd like to review is from Fasio. I actually got this because I wanted something green for my hazel eyes, in hope it would bring out the green in my iris, instead of the usual gold/beige or purple I'm wearing. Plus, Fasio was 20% off at my favourite drugstore. I am actually glad I didn't pay full price for this. Stupid as I was, I thought I could pull of a matte eye colour, which I'm really not good at. Must be my (non-existent) make-up skills or my actual type, but I look better in shimmer. (Maybe because the texture forgives mistakes more easily.) Anyway, as you can see in the swatch (sorry, the light in my room is horrible), the top colour, a yellow in the palette, doesn't really show up, neither with a brush nor the applicator. That's fine, it's only the base, but I am used to uncoloured shimmer bases which have the task of providing shimmer instead of colour, not to no colour no shimmer bases. (It does look kinda shimmery in...

I've been doing a lot of shopping in Japan lately (because I'm going home soon ;__;) and will try to review everything I bought in the next few weeks. Some things need a bit more testing, and I am also quite busy with exams and packing and so on. Anyway, PJ has written about Visée's fall collection for this year in her blog , and has expressed her interest in the new eye shadow palettes, so I will review this item first. You can see a picture of all palettes on their website, http://www.visee.jp/ , if you click on "New Items". Mine is the pinkish one on the very left. The packaging looks very nice, although the case is made of plastic, after all. The shadows have a floral design, too, but of course this one gets destroyed soon as you start using them. The regular price is 1.800 Yen, as listed on the site, but I got mine for 1.100 on a new release discount, I guess. Whereas I really prefer shimmery and sheer colours over matte, intense ones (which is why I didn...

Today, I want to discuss an important topic with you: How to protect your skin from sun damage and even more horrifying results like skin cancer. I am a very pale girl and ever since I had a really horrible allergic reaction to sun, I try to stay in the shadows as much as I can. If I do go out (because sometimes, even I want to play outside in the summer), I wear a sunscreen. As I have crossed the line to being a twen last year and also started living in Japan where the UV rays are supposedly stronger than in Germany, I went to a drugstore and got myself a really good sunscreen that also works as a lotion for my face. Depending on your skin and its special needs, I would advise all of you to search for your perfect sun screen, too. As stated in the link underneath, there are some things you should especially look out for. (Please read the article from the link!) Now why am I writing this? Yesterday, a friend of mine was complaing about dark spots on her face, which had appeared o...

After many struggles with various foundations that either made me break out or ended up too dark for me, I finally found what I was looking for. (Does Missha produce guys, too? xD) Colour #21 is exactly my skin tone, covers well and doesn't make my skin worse. I don't know if it actually makes it better as Missha (or other BB cream brands) claim, but as long as, I can cover up my bad skin without actually needing more cover-up every time I use make-up on it, I'm happy. Plus, it also comes with a SPF 42, so I can apply less sunscreen to my face. (As I said before, I still apply an extra sun lotion to the areas that are most likely to burn, i.e. cheeks and nose, but I don't have to apply it to my very breakout-prone chin anymore.) I've only been using it for a week, so I'm still in the testing phase, but what I can tell you so far is: - Until now, my skin hasn't gotten any irritations from the BB cream. - It does cover quite well, I don't have to use conc...

Sorry for the long absence! I was busy with university and stuff. >___ morning : - wash face with AHA Wash cleansing or soap - use shampoo and conditioner from 一髪 (ichikami) - I switched from using Dove and Nivea shampoo to this one in Japan, and I love it so much already. Smells great, makes my hair super soft and silky... now how do I get enough of it home? - use Dove shower gel (smells good and moisturizes) - apply deodorant (German brand: CD Wasserlilie spray) - use Dove body lotion - massage Avon spliss treatment or Ichikami serum into my hair ends - apply eye cream on my dry under eye area (German natural cosmetic brand: Alverde Augentrost Creme) - apply sun screen on face (and arms + shoulders if needed) (Kosé Sekkisei in winter and Bioré gel or mousse screen in summer) - apply Missha BB cream colour 21 to face - apply face powder (Majolica Majorca, the lightest colour) - shape and fill in eyebrows - apply black eyeliner to upper waterline/upper lash line (- apply eye shado...