My new favourite lip pencil -MAC Pro Longware Lip Pencil in Cultured

MAC Pro Longware Lip Pencil in Cultured  2,916yen
I am going to be honest with you here. I have never been a huge fan of MAC. The only MAC products I own are the limited eyeshadows that I bought a couple of years ago -which I haven't used for ages. I have heard a lot of great things about their lipsticks, foundations, concealers and highlighters....but none of them was appealing to me for some reason. MAC seemed too practical for me.

But the other day I just dropped by their counter in a mall while shopping, and their lip pencils caught my eyes. I was just looking for a perfect lip pencil to correct the uneven tone on my lips and brightens up my complexion. I also had tons of lipsticks that I wouldn't wear on their own, and wanted a lip pencil that I could wear underneath them. I had Spice in mind but it was too orange. So I asked a sales assistant to pick a perfect shade for me, and she picked Cultured.

I personally have never heard of a beauty youtuber / blogger talking about this shade, but Cultured is such a lovely shade that looks natural yet add something on the lips. The finish isn't too matte but definitely not shimmery or pearly, which makes my lips look fuller as it catches the light. It glides on smoothly and doesn't make my lips feel too dry.

I use it as a base underneath a pale-toned lipstick / lipgloss, or sometimes I just wear it on its own with a little bit of a lip balm on top.

This is how it looks on its own.

This is my favourite combo at the moment -MAC Cultured + Clarins Lip Perfecter in 03 Nude Shimmer. I love how Nude Shimmer adds beigy colour to the lips, and tones down the redness of Cultured. I cannot get enough of this combination recently, that I am wearing it every day to work.

As the name suggests, it lasts for hours -actually it's designed to last for 6 hours according to the shop assistant- so when I apply it before leaving my house in the morning, I do not have to do a touch-up until the lunch time. How genius!

The only downside is that I've used up 1/3 of it already in about a month. I don't think it will last more than 3 months if I keep using it at this pace. About 3,000yen for a lip pencil that I would use up in 3 months seems a little too expensive in my opinion, especially now that drugstores have brilliant lip pencils too...although I might repurchase it once I've used it up, that's how much I am in love with this shade.

Best in Beauty 2014 -Makeup

BASE
As mentioned in my previous post, my skin has changed from dry to combination in the past year or two, and it was my mission to find products that make my makeup stay put all day!

E.L.F. Cosmetics Makeup Mist & Set
I originally wanted to try the setting spray from Urban Decay, but as they don't ship to Japan, I tried out this affordable alternative from E.L.F. And it was surprisingly good! It helps my makeup stay put all day, and the best thing is that my eyebrows would stay as they were in the morning until 11pm. As I am extending quite a bit of the end of my eyebrows with my eyebrow pencil, I tend to end up with shorter brows without the ends at the end of the day especially in summer. But one or two spritz of this spray sets them completely and they never go away.

CANMAKE Lasting Multi Eyebase Waterproof
A very good eyeshadow primer which is only 500yen. This tiny tube lasts for more than 6 months which is also a good thing. I don't see a need to invest in an expensive primer!

Kiehl's Micro Blur Skin Perfector
Such an amazing primer!! It really does blur the pores on my cheeks, and makes my foundation goes on smoothly on top. My first tube was kind of defective and separated inside of the bottle, it ended up squirting weird liquid every time I tried to use it. My second tube has been great and NO liquid comes out at all. They said it tends to separate a little bit, but when you squeeze the tube and only water comes out, that is definitely defective. You should contact the customer service if you come across that kind of issue. Anyway, it smells amazing, it felt like burning my skin at the beginning but that was because it has 'a lot of nutrients are concentrated into this formula' as the shop assistant explained. After my skin has been repaired completely, it doesn't irritate my skin at all.

Diorskin Star Fluid Foundation
The shade #20 Light Beige is too orangy to my skin unfortunately, so I am mixing it with my LUNASOL Cream foundation which is a tad too light for my skin. I like to apply this foundation with Dior Star Fluid Sponge which looks like a black egg, as it goes on semi-matte when applied with this particular sponge, and it coves the pores really well. It's medium coverage and semi-matte, yet it still reflects the light and makes your skin look healthy. It's suitable for oily to combination skin as well, for those who do not want a dewy finish yet want to avoid a completely matte skin.

EYES and CHEEKS
For eyes, I enjoyed coloured eyeliners last year, though I was a 'black liquid eyeliner kind of girl' for more than a decade! For cheeks, I found amazing products that I am completely in love with.

L'Oréal Paris La Palette
I cannot live without this palette. The quality of each eyeshadow is amazing, and the shades are perfect for people who love taupe like I do. I haven't worn any other eyeshadow since I got it from lovely Danniella from Famous in Japan.


MAC Alluring Aquatic Collection Extra Dimension Eyeshadow
Definitely the best packaging of the year! I love this shade 'Soul Serenade' which is a very deep taupe which is perfect for a simple smoky look.

Visee Color Impact Gel Liner

In Japan, coloured eyeliners were on trend towards the mid-end of the year. I LOVE these pencil eyeliners from Visee, as they glide on so smoothly, easy to blend, and never budge after being set completely. I love the burgundy shade and the taupe shade called Winter Orchid, which was limited (you still can purchase it on my website HERE).

No7 Stay Perfect Shade And Define
I LOVE this kind of cream eyeshadow in a stick form. I love this shade Cool Mink, such a beautiful and subtle taupe that is perfect for a daily use. It helps eyeshadow on top to stay put as well, and you can of course wear it on its own. I want other shades such as coffee bean, too!

Dolly Wink  Liquid Eyeliner  in Dark Brown
I don't think I've worn a black liquid eyeliner to work for months now. This is such a gorgeous brown liquid eyeliner, which is easy to apply and the colour is perfect. It's not too warm, and pretty pigmented. The brush is thin and does not dry out. I would repurchase it over and over again!

Tarte Amazonian Clay 12-hour Blush
My shade Blissful is such a pretty peachy pink which is perfect to wear on daily basis. What I like about it the most is because it's not too pigmented. Drugstore blushes tend to be TOO pigmented that you need to be really, really careful to apply otherwise you will end up with super red cheeks like apples. But this is is subtle, elegant and very beautiful on the cheeks. Also the staying power is amazing for a powder blush.
  
Majolica Majorca Puff de Cheek in Cherry Mix
I didn't expect to love this blush this much, but I DO!! The marble patterned blush gives a beautiful and natural flash on the cheeks within seconds.The puff is so fluffy (with a cute ribbon on top), and the effect the marble blush gives is just amazing. You need to have this blush in your life. I'm 100% not saying that just because I sell it on my website (HERE), I sell it because I love it this much. I'm not trying to make profits here, I wanted as many people as possible to enjoy the product, and help them in a country where Majo / Majo isn't available to purchase. You can read an in-depth review HERE.

LIPS
...and a sneaky eye product ;)

Heroine Make Long & Curl Mascara Waterproof
Well, I forgot to include in into the eye makeup category but I love this mascara without a doubt! Japanese mascaras tend to stick your lashes together to make them 'thicker' which makes you look like you only have 5 lashes, but this one doesn't do that at all. It separates and lengthens without clumps.

L'Oreal L'Extraordinaire
I am in love with this shade Nude Ballet.I purchased Rose Melody but it's too pinky to my liking. It's more like a lip gloss, but the pigmentation is beyond an ordinary lip gloss formula. It smells fruity (not the typical L'Oreal scent) which I like. I love how glossy and plumped it makes my lips look.

OPERA Sheer Lip Color
A lip gloss in a lipstick form? How handy! It literally looks like I'm wearing a lip gloss, but much less sticky and greasy. My shade Salmon Pink is such a pretty peachy pink which I wore a lot during summer. It's so tiny that fits into my smallest purse.

Carmex Ultra Moisturising Lip Balm
I literally cannot live without Carmex!!! These are the only lip balms that work during winter. I love the lime one the best, and am keen on trying out the vanilla one someday.

Estee Lauder Pure Color Envy
The shade Innocent is such a wearable shade, and it stays for hours and hours on the lips. If you don't have time to reapply a lipstick, this is the one you should apply in the morning. You just need to apply a lip gloss or lip balm on top throughout the day for an instant update.

It's become the longest post ever!!! Thanks for reading x