Photos of the latest Make Up For Ever La Boheme collection are aplenty online but... no harm with more, yes?

In Spring 2012, Make Up For Ever veered away from their usual of statement, intense and pigmented items to present a more Spring-themed collection. With a touch of bohemian flair, the La Bohème collection interprets as gentle, light and airy, though I am mainly basing this conclusion off the centre-piece of collection, the eyeshadow palette.

This has been on shelves at Sephora for a while and I chanced upon it before receiving the collection's inspiration and thought it was a little queer and unlike Make Up For Ever. I had to step back and glance at the shelves once more to make sure I was at Make Up For Ever.

I still stand by that thought but tossing the vibrant and intense image of MUFE aside, it's a collection with some very lovely colors and items if light, natural and organic is your thing!

Starting the product run-through is the award-winning La Bohème Aqua Eyes.

La Bohème Aqua Eyes (S$33)

This comes in a rich and creamy wood-inspired tone, a matte dark brown. Like the rest of their Aqua Eyes, this sits firmly on the skin when swatched and doesn't succumb to rubbing though Sophia mentioned they tend to smudge a little with wear.

La Bohème Rouge Artist Natural (S$35)

2 shades were launched with this collection, Folk and Bohème. Folk is described to be a warm red coral while Bohème is a peachy beige shade.

The shade I received is Folk and while it pulls towards the warm of reds when applied, it has some very beautiful cool-toned purple sparkles within and hints at a purple-ish tint when it hits the light. Though sadly that same tint does not translate once on the lips, the shimmers do though.

This lipstick sits in the center of a glaze and somewhat a satin. It confuses me because while it's not a full-out creamy opaque shade, the glazed glossiness doesn't take away from color delivery either.

Here's a massive swatch close-up because the shimmer bits are pretty.

But clearly noone is going to stare at your lips that close-up so here are some proper lip swatches to compensate.

With my hand-swatch it looks kind of sheer but I'm surprised to see that on the lips, the color does show up. Especially in the above half-lip swatch, the purple shimmers are slightly evident.

The lipstick itself has a scent and slight taste which isn't all bad but thought I would point it out since it might not be everyone's cup of tea.

This may very well be my new favorite red-toned lip color. I liked Clinique's Almost Lipstick but now that my hair has washed off to an auburn, the pink-red tone of it doesn't sit too well in contrast to my hair.

La Bohème Eyeshadow Palette (S$55)

Made in Italy, this palette is constructed with recycled cardboard and dressed in a stitch of gorgeous patchwork designs. The designs definitely embody the Boho fashion with their prints, style and colors.

It is definitely a lovely palette design to admire and while being cardboard, it feels relatively sturdy. I wouldn't go to the point of recommending you to throw in your bag and have it play pinball in there but, you could try?

The 6 shadows encased within are paraben free and baked with 50% pearly particles to give you that ethereal pearlescent look.

While the dome shapes look adorable, I'm not a huge fan of it because this means your brush tends to 'flick' some shadow on the palette while you are picking up color. With the palette being cardboard (and black), immediate cleaning is a must or the palette portion will eventually be crowded with glitter bits and lose part of it's beauty.

The colors in this palette do have some pigmentation to them but I would not say it's close to being described as "intense". With baked shadows, you can typically use them both wet and dry. Perhaps with the wet method you can get more pigmentation out of it but in the dry approach, it's a very light feathery shade (save for the brown).

Admit it, that irridescent glimmer is quite a looker!

While Make Up For Ever has branched out from their norm, or what we know of as a norm, they have certainly done the light and airy right. I suppose while it's nice to be able to classify a brand under a certain genre or label for all of it's eternity, some change and new little characteristics are a fun mix as well.

Aside from the above, I was also provided the Make Up For Ever Eye Primer.

I'm not too sure the price of this but I will mention that when I post my thoughts about how this primer wears. I wasted no time in trying it out because I'm always looking for something to rival my love for Urban Decay Primer Potion. Thus far only Etude House's has shook that a little bit I still go back to my Urban Decay, God knows why!

That would be all for my Make Up For Ever mention on the La Bohème collection. You can find this on the shelves at all Sephoras and the MUFE boutique and OUB Centre #04-16.

What do you think about soft, glimmery eyeshadow shades?
Love them or prefer the *bam* pigmented?

Thanks for reading!

Disclosure:
Products were provided to me for review consideration.
I am not affiliated to them and all opinions expressed are my own.

I thought to do a quick haul/mention entry hence the pictures used in this post were taken with my trusty iphone camera. No 4S here either, just the 4.

Today I picked up another bottle of one of my favorite body moisturizers ever. Due to my eczema I find the need to use a moisturizer every night and on top of that I sleep in an air-conditioned room so the product has to be hydrating and intensive enough for that situation.

I've not tried everything in the world of course but I have had my fair share of moisturizer hopping and I always find myself going back to this!

Jergens Cherry-Almond Moisturizer (Original)

I first started using this back in Secondary school days when my mom was all "a girl needs to use a body moisturizer!". Since then it's been one of my favorite moisturizers because while it's hydrating enough for an air-conditioned environment it's not too thick or greasy to use during the day as well.

I have brand hopped through the likes of Elizabeth Arden, The Body Shop, Bath and Body Works, Victoria Secret and all to still go back to this, I guess that says quite a lot!

I believe one of the reasons I love this is because it's pretty economical, priced at S$11 (at Watsons) for 621ml. I believe the price varies from place to place so you might want to check around but since I had a Watsons Member card, might as well.

I prefer to slap on a generous layer each time I moisturize at night so while the above stated brands have very lovely and deliciously scented body lotions (I especially love EA's Eight Hour Cream), I still like how I can use this without much of a care.

I believe this comes in 4 variations and I always go for Original because I'm a huge fan of cherry and almond scented items, cherry-almond is such a bonus! Though if that's not your type, their Aloe Vera is very mild and light, a good one to try.

I would say I'm quite a body lotion junkie who loves slathering on lotions after showers or anytime during the day on weekends/after waking up. I love having an assortment available for whichever scent I may feel like or fancy but at the end of it so long as I have my Jergens at night I'm good to go!

Thanks for reading!

With Christmas just around the corner (2 months will practically fly by), most counters would most likely putting out their glammed-up, party-ready holiday collections.

This year, Shu Uemura is collaborating with renowned film director Mr Wong Kar Wai to put together a holiday collection that is bursting with character and festivity.

Wong Kar Wai is a master of colors, very much like Mr Shu Uemura himself, hence a collaboration like this can only be seen as a grand affair. Aside from the fusion of glitz and glam, this collection also carries a certain emotion and aura to it. Inspired by a poem written by Charles Bukowski, Wong Kar Wai created an exclusive short film for Shu Uemura.

Titled 'Mask', Wong Kar Wai's short film depicted the emotions he had drawn from the peom in a rich visual format, infused with red for the heat of passion and blue for the sea of calm. The glittery showers and sprays throughout the video also add to the intense mood which would instantly have you feeling ready for the festive season!

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A couple of bloggers and I had the privilege of previewing the collection in mid-October. Held at a small preview lounge in the vicinity of movie theatres, the setting and mood we had for the event was somewhat perfect.

The event started off with a special makeup demonstration. The way each move was made to be it blending the eyeshadow or brushing on the lipstick was done in a dramatic manner, in time with the background music. It was an artistic performance befitting of Shu Uemura's image.

After the demonstration and a brief introduction, the collection was unveiled to us.

The set up for this was beautiful but sadly we had to destroy it for the purpose of swatching and photos!

For this Shu Uemura 2011 Holiday Collection, we have:

• Eye & Cheek Palette – Burning in Water / Drowning in Flame
• False Eyelashes – Dance in Glitter / Jeweled Love
• Glittery Mascara
• Lustrous Glow Powder
• Rouge Unlimited – Rouge Luster / Pink Flush / Glitter Fuse
• Mini Nail Duo – Festive Rouge / Bleu Splendor
• Flashing Gold Mini Brushset
• White Recovery EX Brightening Cleansing Oil

For the last product listed (Brightening Cleansing Oil), it is the same formula as their permanent one except with the glamourous packaging. You can spot it peeking out at the back of the first group shot.

One major focus and emphasis with the packaging was movement. A film-like effect was portrayed across some of the products through lenticular printing, something I can't exactly capture and represent with my camera.

The above is a 'sleeve' that comes with the Premium Dance in Glitter Eyelashes (S$125)

The other lash alternative, Jeweled Love (S$45) comes in the usual Shu Uemura casing except with a stylized background.

The mini brush set (S$125) in this collection comes with 4 'default' face, eye and lip brushes and a cushy zip pouch with the Holiday Collection visuals.

Another product that shares the same holographic effect on the packaging would be the Eye & Cheek Palettes (S$115). Named with direct relations to the poem, these palettes come in 2 tones - a red/maroon and a blue.

Drowning in Flame

Burning in Water

Both palettes consist of gorgeous shades and have a good color pay-off to them. The cream cheek color products found in the palette swatch and pick up pretty well too. The highlighters might blend in a little when swatched but it depends on your skintone though generally they should do their job of highlighting.

Another variety to this collection with be the inclusion of 3 Rouge Unlimited lipsticks (S$39).

L-R: Rouge Luster, Pink Flush, Gltter Fuse

Be it if you love your pinks, peach-neutrals or reds, if some shimmer and glaze is what you're looking for then give these lipsticks a look!

I was a little disappointed with the Lustrous Glow Powder (S$65) because the pretty design you see scrawled across the pan is but an overspray.

After one swatch the bulk of it does vanish, though the powder beneath is still fairly decent. I didn't get a swatch shot because it was quite natural and would be a nightmare to photograph under the dim yellow lighting.

Nail polish is not an area that Shu Uemura tends to play up but in light of the festive mood, they are putting out 2 Nail Polish Sets (S$49).

And last but certainly not least, one item I was quite fascinated by is the Glitter Mascara (S$45).

I am mainly intrigued by how well it would perform. Hopefully it does not disappoint and contributes an obvious amount of bling to the lashes!

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So thats the round up for the Shu Uemura 2011 Holiday Collection, in collaboration with Wong Kar Wai. We got to walk away with some items and I will be sure to feature them when I get to playing around with them.

This collection will be available island-wide at Shu Uemura counters from the 11th of November.

Promotional Image Credits:
(C) 2011 Wong Kar Wai, BLOCK 2 Pictures Inc. All rights are reserved.
I am not affiliated to Shu Uemura. All opinions expressed are my own.

RazorTV wanted to do a segment on youtubers doing haul videos and had approached Sarah, Roseanne and I for an interview regarding this topic.

Some people had tweeted me yesterday saying they saw a photo or still of me in the papers (Straits Times, Life! section) and it was for this particular segment.

(Random: guess what product I'm holding up!! Lol)

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I was super SUPER nervous about the interview the night before and wondered if I was going to screw up while filming and all of that. However the intereviewer (Abigail) was very friendly and comfortable to speak to. We were still carrying out a conversation after they were done filming, it was a pretty fun experience over all!

There are 5 parts to this interview in total, here's my part (part 2):

Part 1 - Introduction
Part 2 - My segment
Part 3 - Sarah's segment
Part 4 - Roseanne's segment
Part 5 - A finalizing video featuring us 3 giving tips on making haul videos.

Not forgetting I definitely want to thank all my lovely readers/subscribers for the support with making haul videos/blog entries even though it can be such a controversial thing. If not for all the positivity I get from you guys regarding this I would have dropped the idea of making haul stuff.

Thank you all so much and thanks to RazorTV for the feature! (:

Eep, it's out!

I'll admit that I had been stalking magazine stands and all for the past week, after word got out that the April issue will be released in the last week of March. I think it is all fate that today was the day I submitted all my assignments, and the day I spotted this on magazine racks. I could just be reading too much into it.

Here's my little feature page, which talks about the Elizabeth Arden Mineral Foundation coupled with photos of the step-by-step methods of using it.

I am still trying to get used to looking at myself with all my hair pulled back. I like the shots and all but I personally find it looks... very different. Though people I know say I look more mature with my hair this way (though what's that supposed to mean! pfft..).

I don't know but I'm still sticking with my bangs for a little while more :D

For those who haven't seen the Behind the Scenes footage of this photoshoot, click here to see it!

I have already mentioned this before I want to thank Elizabeth Arden for this opportunity and also Pearlin for nominating me. I hope I was up to expectations *fingers-crossed* though I seriously seriously know I am not photogenic (chubby cheeks, grr) so I hope it all worked out.

And of course this might be cheesy again but I do want to thank everyone who reads my blog or watches my videos! I know I don't say thank you enough because I am someone who is not very good with words when it comes to saying 'thank you', 'sorry' or anything like that. I often get all unoriginal and can't express how much thanks I feel aside from simply saying Thank You. But do know that everyone matters and I am grateful for everything that I have experienced because of the help, support and of course feedback and interaction with you guys!

Now I feel like I'm writing a speech and I'm no good at cheesy stuff, so I'll stop right here.

I'll wind up this entry with a kick-ass shoe I found while browsing through the magazine.

Is that not just ~wow. I rarely even wear heels but that I would love to own. Not to walk in, but to display! Lol.

So that's it, thank you all again for reading and of course for everything!

Remember that teaser picture I posted up awhile back? If not, here it is again.

I couldn't reveal what it was all about because it was meant to be hush hush, but now that's published, here is what it's all about!

Before I go on let me say that no I am not featured in the Her World magazine, instead I am being featured in an online web article or Beauty Report as it is properly called.

I would like to thank Roseanne for referring me to Vanessa (writer at Her World/in-charge of this article). Roseanne was unable to make it for this since she had to return to melbourne just before, so thanks girl!

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Alright now about the article, it's (as the title says) all about False Eyelashes. Or specifically a guide to false eyelashes.

Now don't freak out!

I am NOT the one that is guiding by any means since you all know how incompetent I am with falsies. I'm actually the one being guided and I was guided by Daen, the makeup artist for the shoot. I found this experience quite appropriate since I have been trying to do false lashes since forever but I don't know why exactly it is that I am failing to do it well.

Before I blabber on I should plug the article here so those who don't want to hear my chatter can go check that out:
Click here to read the article!

And further down this entry I'll just throw Behind the Scenes shots and a brief summary of what I had to do/experience etc.

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A brief summary of what happened was Daen (the makeup artist) would try on a couple different falsies and these ranged from dramatic, to neutral to individual strands. Daen would apply the false eyelashes on my right eye and (here comes the scary part) I would have to replicate it on my left eye.

It's safe to say that I did manage to get the false eyelashes down with some guidance from Daen on how to hold them right, how to place them etc. Though I want to say that before this, I have tried wearing false eyelashes maybe 3 times before I got all frustrated and gave up, I have no idea why I managed to actually put them on during this event. It's weird but hey I'm not complaining! I do want to thank the little crew (Vanessa, Daen and photographer Ben) for being patient with me while I fumbled with the lashes. I definitely took awhile, but hey, I got them down!

Okay I'll stop saying that. I also managed to leave the studio with these Shu Uemura individual falsies on (the last set we tried) :D

Falsies do look so pretty on...
Now I think I should replenish my lash glue and give these babies another shot.

And because I can't figure out how to be all smooth, here's an abrupt jump to some Behind the Scenes footage (video and photos). I managed to shoot a short pointless video, but incase anyone is interested (:

Daen & Vanessa!

Ben hard at work

And last but not least 2 group shots. Well one with my camera and the other with Ben's pro camera. I thought both were quite cute and not the same so I'm posting them both up.

Vanessa's so cute, wearing my hair clip and Daen being vogue. haha.

Left to Right: Ben, Vanessa, Me, Daen

It was great fun meeting up with these people, they were all really friendly and nice. It didn't feel corporate in anyway, very relaxed atmosphere, easy conversations. Fun stuff!

So incase you haven't read it already, here's the article again!
Your Step-By-Step Guide To Putting On Fake Eyelashes

Thank you for reading!

Nothing very new in this entry, just a little feature on Bellasugar. (:

Apparently I don't browse the other sugar sites often enough because I just found out about this and the feature was last week I think.
Truthfully the only thing I know how to work is my onsugar site and changing my profile on the general sugar site. I think I need to explore this community a lot more.

But anyway, here's the feature. Click here to read it, though it's pretty much the same content as my blog entry.

Thanks for the feature, and thank you for reading!

Demi Lovato on cover. Not a fan of hers... but she looks good here.

I found a little something in the November issue of Seventeen magazine.
Under the section where people are able to mail in and submit their stories or something, I saw this:

p.s. Bel I see you! haha.

I wonder who Mary-Anne is, but regardless thank you very much for writing this in (and seventeen for publishing).
It definitely made my homework-filled day (:

Though it's in the mail-in section where people don't usually read, it's still awesome. Or maybe I just get excited over little things, but this means quite a lot to me!

Who knows? Maybe seventeen might take from that letter and feature us in future articles.
Probably a long shot, but a girl can dream, right?

Thanks again Mary-Anne!!
And of course everyone who bothers reading and watching my stuff. (:

Much Love!

Or the Urban section of The Straits Times, for those more familiar.
I was featured with Sarah Chaudhry and Wiwit Anggun.

Regarding makeup as a career, I did say I wasn't very sure about it and I still stand by what I say. I am considering it, but at the same time I don't feel ready for it just yet. Even if I do pick it up as a career, it might not necessarily be being a make-up artist. There are so many career paths in the make-up industry right now, being a make-up artist is one aspect of it. But it's safe to say that regardless what happens, I'll finish my studies first and the make decisions.

Click here to view full article

Here are some 'behind-the-scenes' photos courtesy of Wiwit and Sarah!

Group shot! With the reporter and photographer.
I must say the scariest part of this would be the photoshoot and also not knowing what to expect.

The photoshoot was scary because, well it just is! I'm sure most would agree with me. The fact that you're not sure which photo they are going to use, whether you'll look decent in it and if your smile looks like you've got a face cramp etc. You know what I mean.
And the next bit would be not knowing what is going to be reported. Although we did fill up a little questionnaire sort of a thing, what would eventually be written would always be ammended in a way. And we always hear horror stories about things being written in the wrong way and not reporting the right thing. But I guess that fear was unfounded. The report was pretty accurate and amendment was kept minimal. Thank goodness! haha.

Overall, this was a very exciting experience and as I have mentioned before, I have to thank everyone for all your support and encouragement.
It sure means a whole lot to me and I cherish and value every single one of you! And I'm not just saying that, you guys know it. (:
<33

p.s. For those who have read the full article - I have declined to reveal the brands because during that period, most of them weren't confirmed yet. It was that mailing back and forth period, so I didn't want to drop names when I wasn't sure. Fret not, if I am sent something by a company, I will be honest about it.

(seriously though, the man in the boxers..... tsk)
The Straits Times (Singapore's local paper), HOME Section.

I'm sure most people have seen it already, but I thought I'd just post it on my blog too.
Since I don't have a Straits Times subscription I could only get a shot of this when I went over to my boyfriend's place.
I'm probably going to scan the newspaper article (coming out tomorrow!) in, just cause I'm so excited about it like that. Lol

But thing is, I'm not the only one that's going to be featured, there are others too!
And I'll kind of keep those a mystery on my end. Whether they want to reveal it or not it's up to them ;)

It's pretty exciting and I definitely have to give a big thank you to everyone who bothers reading my blog and watching my videos.
Not to be all cliche, but without you guys, this wouldn't be possible at all.
So thank you! <3