Josie Maran Live Color-fully Argan Oil Collection [Review]

This Live Color-fully Argan Oil Collection by Josie Maran Cosmetics is a limited edition set available exclusively at Sephora. For $38, you get a collection of Josie Maran products with a retail value of $59 if purchased separately.

The items are: Coconut Watercolor Cheek Gelee 2.7g (travel size, $13 if purchased on its own), Argan High Gloss Lip Quench 8ml (full size, $18), Argan Watercolor Eye Shadow 4.7ml (full size, $18) and Argan Black Oil Mascara 5ml (small size, approx $13.85).

Review & swatches of Tarte Natural Cheek Stain

Ever since I started with my natural/organic/paraben-free makeup and skincare resolution I've been a huge fan of Tarte Cosmetics. Their products are formulated to be free of parabens, synthetic fragrances and GMOs.

My favorite Tarte products are probably their lipglosses, but I also adore their Natural Cheek Stain. These smell great, give a pretty color to my cheeks, are easy to blend and non-drying.

They all contain various skin invigorating ingredients such as t5 super fruit complex (5 super fruit extracts - acai, acerola, goji berry, maracuja and pomegranate, all are great antioxidants), various vitamins and natural fruit & plant extracts.

Left to right - blissful, flush, dollface

blissful
Pretty warm peachy pink, smells a little fruity. Looks great in the summer especially if you have a tan, but personally I prefer dollface & flush over this one.

flush
Raspberry pink and gives a healthy glow, scented like raspberries. Gives me a healthy rosy glow when used sparingly, but if applied with a heavy hand it makes me look like I've been out in the sun for too long - beetroot colored cheeks do not look good.

dollface 
Very sheer candy pink with microshimmer, smells like strawberries & cream (mmmm....) My favorite cheek stain, gives a very flattering soft candy pink glow and perks up my skin making it look brighter.

I usually use these straight from the tube and wipe them clean with a tissue afterward, but you can also use fingers to apply. They feel a little sticky to begin with but last a good 6-8 hours on me.

Each cheek stain comes in a push up tube containing 28.4g, and retails at $30. Very reasonable price considering only a small amount is needed so they'll last forever.

Unfortunately Tarte is not available in the UK, so I have to get my fix through an US parcel forwarding service.

banila co eyeshadow palette swatches - Gossip Girl, S Night Standing & Deep The Night

I did plan to do this banila co review of their eyeshadow palettes last week, but somehow ended up being busy. I'm putting them all together for now, but if it looks like too much to digest I'll split it into 3 posts. Anyway, here are my thoughts!

Palette stacking!

Gossip Girl Multi Palette S01
I think this was released around spring this year and consists of a blusher, 3 eyeshadows and a soft brush. The 3 eye colours can be used to create a soft girly look.


Texture is silky with decent (and buildable) pigment, and the shadows all have a pearly finish. Although they don't crease thoughout the day, I do find that the colour fades a bit.

The blush is a soft pink which blends very nicely. It's a tiny bit on the light side (would be better if it was slightly warmer) for me as it's medium pigmented, but it still works.

Purchased from Gmarket for 22,000KRW (around $19 currently), but a few days later it went on sale at half price. Typical!

S Night Standing Palette Shadow S03
One of banila co's summer releases - I have no idea what "S night standing" is supposed to mean though...


Contains 6 eyeshadows in a pretty star decorated metal case with a dual ended sponge applicator (nothing spectacular there). Out of the 3 palettes this is probably my favourite case - as much as I love pink, I'm just not a huge fan of those random bubbles on the Gossip Girl palette.

All eyeshadows have a bit of shimmer but not glittery. You can create different looks using different colour combinations, which is always versatile. Some of the colours are more pigmented - such as the gorgeous metallic bronze on the left and some lean towards the sheer side, but all are smooth and blend easily.

Deep The Night Multi Eye Kit F05
The most recent banila co eyeshadow palette; has 5 eyeshadows and a cream liner. The box is very pretty but the case is just a deep purple with sparkles (like the background in the pic below).

There's a dual ended applicator with sponge for shadow application & smudging, and an eyeliner brush. This is obviously more of night time palette, but could be used during the day too since some shadows are quite sheer despite appearing pigmented in the palette. I really like this palette in particular, as all the colours go so well together.

None of the eyeshadows are matte and they all have either a metallic sheen or some shimmer - I actually prefer this, but I guess not everyone does. The cream eyeliner (far right) has some shimmer too, but it's only noticeable if you look really closely.

I think at 22,000KRW each, these palettes are excellent value for money and totally worth picking up if you don't already own similar colours. The quality is definitely there as the shadows are silky, blendable, smooth and don't crease too much, but I have noticed some colour fading both with and without primer.

Note: due to the closeup angles the photos were taken, the palettes may seem bigger than they actually are. They measure approximately 9cm x 5.5cm x 1cm.

I purchased all palettes from the same Gmarket seller 바닐라코 (official banila co distributor I believe).

Review of Josie Maran Earth Day Essentials Kit

Most people have probably heard of Josie Maran, or have seen photos of her at some point. She's the girl who used to be a regular feature on adverts for Maybelline (google for her if you don't know who I'm on about) and when she stopped modelling, she created Josie Maran Cosmetics - a range of toxin free, organic and "luxury with a conscience" makeup and skincare. These products are made of the purest earth friendly ingredients and the packagings are recyclable as well.

Unfortunately living in the UK means I don't have easy access to all these awesome stuff, and even if I did the prices would be quite ridiculous. For example a tinted moisturizer that retails for $42 in the States would sell for £34 in this country - how is that for currency conversion?? So when I do want to purchase from stores like Sephora I always use a parcel forwarding service.


This Earth Day Essentials Kit has a value of $98 if you add up the retail prices of each individual item, but for $48 you get full sizes of:
- Argan Oil (the only mini size item, 100% organic oil)
- Cream Blush in Sunrise
- Eye Liner
- Mascara
- Plumping Lip Gloss in Daring


While not exciting, it is a great way to get started and try some basic products. Besides one can never go wrong with some lipgloss, mascara and a bit of blush.

...Until now.

I will start with the things I didn't like so much/at all.

Plumping Lip Gloss
Daring is described as a "sheer shimmery rosy nude" and it is quite accurate (the lighting unfortunately makes it look a bit more orange in the photo) but the problem is the colour just does not suit me at all. Also, the actual brush applicator is so short that the plastic wand scraped against my lips when I applied it, not a nice feeling - I've never had this problem with other brands' lip brushes.


It is not supposed to sting like other lip plumpers, but it burns my lips like mad. At first I thought it was maybe because of what I had eaten or it was reacting with what I had on my lips before or whatever, so tried it again the following day on bare lips. It still stung... not like a minty tingle but more of an allergic reaction of some sort I guess.

It didn't stay on long enough for me to notice any plumping effects while I hunted for a cotton pad to wipe it off asap.

Cream Blush

Sephora's site says this is Sunrise, so does the box and the sticker on the back of the mirrored compact but no matter how I look at it, it just does not resemble its "soft pink" description and is more of a coral pink like Sunset.


Maybe I was unfortunate enough to get a bad batch? Either way, as soft and creamy as this blush is, it's way too dark for me so I won't be using it. That's a shame because had I received the actual Sunrise (swatch on official site) I think it would look rather pretty.

Mascara - Black
Average, average, average. I like its sleek packaging, and the fact that it's free of synthetic ingredients, but nothing else really stands out about it unfortunately. Then again compared to my absolute fave mascara Majolica Majorca Lash Glamour Neo, only Le 2 De Guerlain measured very favourably against it so far. This is not as bad as my Illamasqua mascara faux pas - nothing is - but doesn't make me want to repurchase.


Holds a curl ok, lengthens a bit but no thickening effects really. Looks nice in the morning but a mere few hours (around 2-3) later I start seeing signs of racoon eyes when the mascara begins to smudge and smear at the bottom. For a non waterproof mascara it's tricky to remove, because it tends to burrow into the roots of my lashes and just sits there, as well as sticks to my eyelids in the process. Really stupid formula imo....

Eye Liner - Black

Hands down the softest pencil liner I've used (doesn't drag the skin around my eyes at all), but also the most useless. The shade of black isn't too harsh which is great, except if I accidentally rub it, it goes everywhere. Would be great for a smokey eye look if its lasting power isn't so non existent.


I also need to go over the same line several times, otherwise the colour is a dark charcoal grey.

It retails for $18 but no way I would pay that for a liner that does so little.

Argan Oil

Now for the item that I *do* like (wait 1 product out of 5, that's just dire) - the Argan Oil comes in a tiny sample size bottle which I think is quite cute and portable. I also purchased the full size 1.7oz (48ml) bottle as well.

Don't be put off by the word "oil" as this is lightweight, non greasy and does not clog my pores. I use it on my face before moisturizer if I happen to have a dry cheek day, rub it into my cuticles & nails, and the ends of my hair to give them that extra bit of moisture. I even massage it into my navel scar (unfortunately my piercing became infected on holiday few years ago so I had to take it out) to make it softer so I can have it repierced next year.

I only need to use 1 drop of oil per cheek and its restorative properties make my face seriously soft, especially if I use it at night before bed. It is a 100% natural fabulous multi-purpose product and can literally be used anywhere.

Here's a pic of the back of the box with a list of possible uses

I'm glad I at least found one thing I really like, but as a whole I think Earth Day Essentials is a waste of money. The fact all products are made from organic & natural ingredients with fully recyclable packaging is a welcome change, but most products I tried in the kit simply didn't deliver.

The Argan Oil is now also available in Stick (want!) and Bronzing versions.

I also purchased Josie Maran Finger Paints in Sweet because it looked so pretty; I will be using and reviewing it at a later date.

First venture into Paul & Joe Beaute

Actually this is my second visit to P&J; my first was for their beauty mirror (I don't know where it is atm though).

There was a 20% off ASOS offer so I took this opportunity to get a couple of things from P&J; I wanted a foundation too but wasn't sure which shade to go for so passed on it. I'll be going to London soon anyway and will wait till then to look at foundation shades in person.

I picked out:
- P&J Hand Cream
- P&J Face Color in 15 Re Belle (it had to be pink!)

Paul & Joe Face Color
I believe Re Belle is one of the newly released colours; it comes in a very pretty light dusty pink mirrored compact, and the blush itself is split into 2 colours.


On the left is a matte rosy pink and the colour on the right looks coral/peach but when applied is more of a sparkling peach pink, which has a very subtle shimmer and gives a pretty glow when used over the rosy pink, but both colours could be used on their own too.


Texture is silky smooth and very blendable. You can use a small amount for a natural flush, or build it up for more intensity, however, the blush itself isn't ultra pigmented so if you're after a pigmented blush this isn't it.

The rosy pink is actually a bit too pink for me but I apply my blush with a light hand (I prefer them sheer/natural) anyway so it's not a big problem.

Paul & Joe Hand Cream
Usually I don't like hand creams much, because the ones I've tried so far always sat on the surface of my hands for ages, even ones that claim to absorb quickly; I absolutely hate leaving fingerprints on everything I touch so I don't bother with a hand cream unless it's just before I go to bed.


I added P&J Hand Cream to basket because I liked the cute tin it came in - most hand creams come in a squeeze tube, which is more hygienic but this is for my use only anyway. Sometimes I'm such a sucker for cute packaging... *sigh*

There's a protective plastic lid inside to stop the cream from getting onto the actual lid.

The cream itself feels creamy and luxurious, but doesn't leave an uncomfortable greasy film like a lot of hand creams. There's a very pleasant light orange scent, but it disappears quickly which is good news if you don't like fragranced hand care products.

I guess it's unrealistic to expect any cream to sink in straight away - even with lightweight moisturizers they always sit on your skin for a few seconds at least - but this is hands down the fastest absorbing hand cream I've tried; after a few seconds the only thing left behind is the softness of my hands. The pretty tin will look cute sitting on my desk too! 80g of product in the tin may not seem like a large amount, but only a little cream is needed so it will last ages.

As my P&J experience has been positive so far, I'm actually really looking forward to visiting their counter soon!

Bihada Ichizoku Blush review

I stumbled across Bihada Ichizoku on Hi-Japan; I was drawn by their name (means "beautiful skin family") and the cutesy anime girls on their packaging. Since I couldn't decide on which of their masks to try, and I already had a bunch of lipglosses in my cart, I decided to go for the pink blush to be on the safe side. There's also a beige version but pink is more me =)


I'm normally a huge fan of Japanese makeup packaging (cutesy Majolica Majorca and Lavshuca are firm favourites) but this Bihada Ichizoku blush reminded me of Shu Uemura's plain looking blushers. Not exactly jaw dropping but the pink box it comes in is quite cute.


The blush itself, however, is amazing for its $390 TWD price tag (around $12 USD or £7). It is highly pigmented, finely milled with a subtle glimmer, and is so silky smooth that I want to run my finger through it all the time. No worries if you apply too much and end up like a clown, you can blend blend blend to your heart's content until you get the desired result.

I think this would look good on most skintones, as you can really blend it out for a subtle fresh faced glow, or build it up for more colour.