It's the end of June, summer is around the corner. Are you protecting your skin from the strong sun? Here are my top sun protection products that I've been loving this summer! 1. Organic Argan UV Cut Spray Love this UV cut spray not only because it provides long-lasting (and waterproof) UV protection of SPF50+ PA+++, but it smells divine. I don't even need a perfume when I wear this handy sunscreen which you can spray easily on your back, the back of your legs and hair. 2. Clinique Superdefense Daily Defense Moisturizer SPF 20 This moisturiser with SPF20 is perfect for a lazy weekend when I'm not wearing foundation. It has a slight sunscreen scent that I'm not a big fan of, but it goes away after like 5 minutes. Love the fact it gives a matte finish, too.
3. Clinique Superdefense SPF 20 Age Defense Eye Cream Why don't all the eye creams in the world have SPF? This moisturising eye cream is tinted which brightens up my eye area instantly, while protecting the most sensitive areas to the sun. I am glad that they brought out an eye cream with SPF as I tend to get dark spots around my eyes, and this product makes me feel secure! 4. Origins Smarty Plants CC Cream / Light I use this SPF20 CC cream to correct my complexion and to protect my skin against UV. I wrote a full-review HERE so I'm not going to ramble here about it, but it's such a lovely CC cream that evens out the skin tone and gives a subtle glow to it. I find the texture a little too heavy for me during summer, but I love wearing it in Spring, Autumn and Winter! 5. Origins Brightening Protector SPF40 PA+++ This is the sunscreen from their brightening range only sold in Asia. I love this one more than Smarty Plants CC Cream during summer, because it has higher SPF and the texture feels lighter on the skin. It doesn't have the sunscreen smell at all, and I enjoy the fruity scent that most of their products have. 6. Biore Aqua Rich Watery Essence You can read my in-depth review on this product HERE. It smells of citrus, and has NO sunscreen scent at all. It doesn't feel greasy on the skin, or face, I don't mind wearing it all over my body at all as it feels like I'm not wearing sunscreen! I would repurchase it once I've ran out of this current tube. That's how much I'm in love with this sunscreen! I like Japanese products when it comes to sunscreen. They usually don't smell of sunscreen at all, and they don't leave your face looking like ghost's. It surprises me how many old-fashioned sunscreens are out there still, as it's even hard to find them in Japan lately. What's your favourite sun protection items?
L'Oreal L'Extraordinaire by Color Riche First of all, let me thank lovely Danniella from famousinjapan, who kindly sent me the shade Nude Ballet from L'Extraordinaire when we did a swap a couple of weeks ago. I had been eying on L'Extraordinaire since the launch in the US, I knew I would love them because I love L'Oreal Glam Shine Stain Splash, and L'Extraordinaire seemed very similar and even better.
The shade Danniella sent me was Nude Ballet, and I purchased Rose Melody myself on eBay because I loved Nude Ballet so much and wanted to try other shades.
The left is Rose Melody, a beautiful nude pink with tiny silver glitter particles. The right is Nude Ballet, a creamy nude beige with a rosy / pinky undertone which doesn't wash you out.
Rose Melody Look how pretty it looks on the lips! I'm so glad that it's not a kind of pink that has a blue / purple undertone which I'm not a big fan of. It's a perfect nude pink that you can wear on daily basis.
Nude Ballet I've been in love with nude lips since I discovered Nude Delight and Notting Hill Nude from Rimmel, as a nude lipstick makes the whole look sophisticated when the shade is right for you. And I must say that Nude Ballet is the new favourite nude of mine! It goes with any look, from smoky-eye to natural no-makeup-makeup. It makes your lips look pinker yet less red if that makes sense...You know why I love this shade, look at the photos, it's gorgeous!! I must mention that it has a subtle scent that some people might not like. For me it smells like Origins Drink Up, kind of fresh and fruity. I don't mind the scent at all, but I can understand if someone says it's disturbing. L'Extraordinaire is not a lip stain, but it stays on the lips for hours. It remains pretty glossy for hours without reapplication, which is very handy for me at work as I literally don't have time to re-apply a lippie. One thing I don't like about this product is that it is a little bit sticky and kind of gooey on the lips. You never forget that you are wearing it on your lips, as it reminds you every time you open and close your mouth. But at the same time, I shouldn't be complaining about it because this is why it stays on the lips for so long...If you are not a big fan of sticky lipgloss, you might not like this product. Overall I'm loving both Rose Melody and Nude Ballet at the moment. They are always in my bag, I take them wherever I go. I wonder why L'Oreal in Japan is so crappy, although the brand has so many great products in the US and UK. I've been eying on the nude lips that were inspired by the actresses. I'm thinking of getting Cheryl's nude or Eva's nude!
If you are in Japan you must have heard already, but Bourjois is leaving Japan in July. I was gutted to hear that back in May, as Bourjois is one of my favourite drugstore beauty brands that you can get in Japan. Their price tag is ridiculous considering the one in the UK, but still I have been loving their foundation, concealer and lipsticks. And now PLAZA is having 20% off sale on all of Bourjois' products, so I decided to stock up with their nail polishes. You can get Bourjois from ASOS and lookfantastic, but nail polishes cannot be shipped because of the restriction. I thought it's smart to stock up with something I cannot get from ASOS.
So laque glossy nail polish #02 (How odd that we don't have a name on each shade in Japan. Boring!) This is such a gorgeous summery shade! I've been wearing it none-stop recently as it pops yet goes with any style. This orangey-red shade compliments my skin tone, I love wearing it on my toes as well. The formula is very opaque, you only need two coats to get the colour and it never goes on streaky. And it doesn't chip for days.
One second gel nail polish #19 Love the shade, such a unique purple with a brown undertone. The brush is wide and easy to apply, but I tend to miss the tips of the nails with this brush for some reason. I have to be extra careful, otherwise my nails look chipped although they are freshly painted!
One second gel nail polish #05 I thought I would love this shade but I am not a big fan actually. It's more orangey than I wanted it to be, and it makes my skin look dull. I also don't like the glitter particles, without them it would look much more glossy I guess :(
So laque glossy nail polish #07 Love this nude shade with a hint of pink, it makes my fingers longer and slimmer! The only downside is that it's too sheer that you need like 3 coats or more to get the colour in the bottle. I usually apply 2 coats only though you can see the nails through the nail polish. It doesn't go on too streaky, but you definitely need multiple coats to create an even finish.
So laque glossy nail polish #09 This shade is pain in the butt to apply!! I literally applied 4 coats when I took the photo above. You can see how thick it looks on my nails. It's so streaky and apply unevenly. I want it to look a bit sheerer and paler but I just needed to apply coat after coat to fix the streaky finish. I love the shade, it's such a pretty pale blue but I don't recommend it if you are not a professional manicurist who don't have a special technique to make it work...because it takes ages!
Do you have any other favourite shades from their nail polish collection? What is your favourite item from Bourjois? :)
