Saturday, October 30, 2010

Romantic pin up look

I can't believe I have been making this many tutorials lately. Just in the mood to share my love of makeup to the world! LOL! Anyway, this was the look I came up with. Romantic pin up look which was inspired by the 60's/70's classic pin up looks. In fact it was a hindi movie  'Om Shanti Om' that inspired me . The story was also situated around the 70's. Interesting costumes and makeup, which obviously lead me to do this makeup look.

Here are my glamourous shots!






These are what I used for this look:

Eyes
Mac - Fresco paintpot
Mac - Ricepaper e/s (highlight & lid colour)
La femme - Brown e/s (crease)
Ebay - Black cream eyeliner
Max factor - 58 blonde inliner kajal pencil

Cheeks
Mac - Ricepaper (as cheek highlight)
La femme - Mocha blush

Lips
Graftobian - Garnet lip colour
Sasa - Red lip liner 


Thanks for watching!

Have a pleasant weekend!
(Just received Burda style nov issue magazine. That's going to keep me busy this weekend)

Friday, October 29, 2010

Review: Bdellium tools anti-bacterial makeup brushes

I was provided the 7pc studio line brushes for review purposes. I must say I am very happy to have tried them out. I am always very picky and choosy when it comes to makeup, makeup brushes or even anything that I put on my face. I must say these brushes performed better than I expected.

7pc studio line brushes

This is their website : Bdellium tools

Here is a break down of what I think about them.

1) My 1st impression of the brushes - I wasn't convinced that the Bdellium brushes were anything special, it was only after using them that I realized I was wrong. The yellow colour of the handles is quite refreshing as my other brushes are either in black or brown.

2) What are the names of the brushes and their uses -

#964S AP Blusher - Powder blush application and it can be used to dust on face powder as well.

#948S Foundation - Liquid and cream foundation, concealer as it has a tapered tip and can be used to apply cream blush too.

#942S Slanted Contour - This is my favorite brush of the entire set because finally I can place the contour colour where I want it to be. This brush can also double up as a blusher brush.

#785S Tapered Blending - A good blending brush. Can be used on the crease and to apply highlight shade. It can also be used to apply concealer for an air-brush effect.

#777S Shadow - This brush handles powder/loose eyeshadows very well as its bristles are dense. It has a slight point on the tip so it can also be used to apply a crease colour.

#763S Small Angle - A good brush for powder or gel eyebrow colour. However, in my opinion I don't think I would use it for eye-lining as the bristles are too thick for fine lining. 

#540S Precision Liner - Lip stick brush which aides precision lining. I also found it useful for blemish concealing or in other words spot concealing. 


3) My impressions after deep cleaning the brushes - These brushes did not shed, bleed or even loose their shape. I was quite surprised by that actually, because almost 95% of the brushes I own (both high end & low end) have had shedding and bleeding problems. I have washed them 3 times now and they are still as new.

4) Anti-bacterial for sure? - I am not sure that I can endorse this claim as I do not have any means of checking it. However I feel that no company would risk their reputation with claiming that their brushes are coated with anti-bacterial technology if this is not the case. I will take their word for it. 

5) Any of the brushes I didn't like that very much? - I didn't really enjoy using the #763S Small Angle  as it was quite a thick brush for eye-lining purposes but I used it for my eyebrows and it worked fine.

6) My final verdict - If you are looking for brushes that has all the needed tools for makeup application. I think this brush set is the one for you. Very versatile and yet pocket friendly. I believe these brushes are far less expensive than the Sigma brush sets. I do own Sigma brushes btw.



Disclaimer : Just because I got this brush set for free does not mean that I give a sugar coated opinion. I believe that my time and effort is precious and if an item does not work, why make a video and blog post. My time is precious and I also do not want to mislead anyone.

Indian makeup: Smokey purple

I am in the mood for indian makeup. It's like halloween for me! Btw, Halloween is not really celebrated in Sweden nor in Singapore as in the US. I guess these looks can be used for halloween too, if you are dressing up as an Indian princess or a Bollywood doll. I had fun getting dolled up. I really hope my videos are useful and entertaining to some of you. That's the whole purpose of making tutorials right?!

Anyway, here are some good pictures out of the 100 pictures I took. So you can imagine how flash blinded I was after that!









Here are the products used:

Eyes
Urban decay - Primer potion
Ebay - Purple gel liner
Nyx - Slate jumbo pencil
Homemade - Purple with gold glitter e/s (made it with tkb trading mica and pigments)
Mac - Young punk mineralized e/s (for the outer crease)
Nyx - Nude pearl pigment (as highlight)
Bourjois - 58 Noir bleute eyeliner
Isa dora - Chrome black liquid liner

Cheeks
Mac - Vintage grape ombre blush

Lips 
Mac - Vino lip liner
Mac - Fast play lipstick


Thank you for all the wonderful support you have given me! I wouldn't be motivated to do all these without your encourage! So thank you!

Have a lovely day!

Tuesday, October 26, 2010

Indian makeup: Vivid Green and Gold look

I am in the mood for Indian makeup looks. The reason is because Deepavali/ Diwali is just around the corner. It is on the 5th of november. I do not celebrate this festival as I am not a Hindu however I enjoy getting dressed up and going to relatives and friends homes to spend time and eat loads of good food. This is the time of the year one can get good bargains on Saris and indian costume jewelry. Every year, my mum and I would make it a point to go to Little India (in Singapore), for shopping of indian clothes and accessories. Now that I am here in Sweden, I truly miss that very much.






Here are the products used in this tutorial:


Eyes
Mac - Indianwood paintpot
Lakme - Green glide on colour pencil (got this in Singapore, you can google and see if there are online stores selling this)
120 palette - Green (lid colour)
120 palette - Gold (for the inner corner)
120 palette - Balck (deepen the crease)
120 palette - Yellow gold (as highlight)
Isa Dora - Chrome black liquid liner
Loreal - Volume million lashes mascara

Cheeks
La femme - Sienna (as contour)
La femme - Russet ( as blush)

Lips 
Nyx - Mauve lip pencil
Nyx - Indian pink





Have a great day!

Saturday, October 23, 2010

No fuss daily makeup!

Somedays, I just feel like wearing very minimum makeup that is simple and fuss free. I don't like wearing so much foundation. I believe that when you have good skin, take care of it and let it show. Don't hide it under a think layer of foundation. However saying that, if you do have imperfections that you want to hide, go ahead and feel free to go for a heavier coverage. I have had my bad skin days and I know how it feels.

Anyways, I thought making a video showing you my daily fuss free makeup would be helpful to some who are just like me.

Here are the products I used in this video.

Face
Mac - Moisture select cover NW35
Mac - Studio fix powder NC45
Mac - Medium/dark mineralize skin finish

Eyes
Mac - Barestudy paintpot
Isa dora - Glossy liquid liner in 40 chrome black
Loreal - Volume million lashes in black
Mac - Feline eye kohl pencil

Cheeks
Mac - Foolish me blush (discontinued)

Lips
Mac - Lust is last lipgelee (discontinued)

Brushes used 
Flat bronzer brush (got it from ebay)






Take care!
  Have a great weekend!






Friday, October 22, 2010

Sewing pattern organisation tip

I was reading a blog post by, Ten Thousand Hours of Sewing - Victoria (If you are not following her blog, please do. She is one talented lady). She was sharing about her pattern stash and if anyone had any ideas to share on how to organize them in a cost effective way. That post prompted me to write about my sewing pattern organization. I hope someone will find my organization tip helpful and maybe even improvise and come up  with a better idea. 



I store all my fabric and sewing patterns in a plastic storage container. I bought it in Singapore about two years ago from a big supermarket called 'Giant'. This sits right under my drafting table. 

I store my sewing patterns in one of the drawers. I do not own as many sewing patterns as my other fellow sewing enthusiasts! LOL!

As you can see, I put my patterns in a see through envelope. This way I can see the picture on the envelope and the pattern number. 


When I ran out of the nicer looking envelopes, I resort to using zip lock bags.....

At the end of the day, all that matters is that I can see the pattern number & it's neat and tidy. 

Thanks for coming by!

Love Love





Tuesday, October 19, 2010

Eye lining techniques - using 4 different products!

Eye lining can be very challenging for some. I made this video to encourage anyone to start lining their eyes as it doesn't need special talent. All you need is some patience and practice. Also remember not to pull you eyelids when lining. I hope this tutorial will be useful for many of you who struggle with eye lining.

Here are the following products used in this video :

1) La femme pressed eye shadow is black
2) Mac feline eye khol pencil
3) Mac blacktrack fluidline
4) Isa dora glossy black liquid eyeliner
5) Sigma angled brush - SS266
6) Fine tip artist brush ( can be found at any craft or art stores)



Happy week!
Love Love!

Saturday, October 16, 2010

Akamuti skincare haul


Thanks to one of my fellow Youtuber Dianeuk01, I got to know about this company Akamuti. They have a skincare line which is 100% natural and organic at an affordable price. I absolutely love their products except for one. You will see why as you read on. Akamuti ships only with UK and Europe for now. However you can find the Akamuti products on ebay but they do not have a whole range as seen on their website.


So I went ahead to purchase the following items after Dianeuk01 talked about how they have worked well on her skin. I have always been into natural products and am very picky with what I put on my face. When I read about this company and how they produce their products, I was quite impress because they believe in fair-trade (in other words this company believes in trading ethically and responsibly). I am a true believer in that and one day when I own a business, it will be like that too.



I have talked about how the products have worked on my skin so please check it out. Here are the products I got.

1) Organic facial mist 110ml - £6.95
2) Organic eye toner - £6.00
3) Organic facial blossom facial toner - £6.95
4) Organic virgin shea butter - £6.95
5) Replenishing rose facial oil - £10.00
6) Lavender & Geranium body oil - £6.50 (I totally forgot to include this item in my video review as it was left in my bathroom.)

I absolutely love all the items except for the organic virgin shea butter. To me the butter was not smooth when applying as it was tugging onto my skin and it smelled like old rubber/latex. However, the company did mention about the firmness and smell of the shea butter on their website. I did read it but I didn't expect it to be this bad. I will find a way to make this shea butter work for me. Just as a warning, if you are someone who dislikes the smell of rubber or is even allergic to it, I suggest you keep away from this particular product. 

Now for my overall view of this company and their products.

Akamuti customer service : 5/5 
(They were really good with handling complaints.)

Product packaging : 2.5/5 
( The items were packed in bubble wrap and put in a normal pick envelope. The facial oil and mist bottles were made of glass, so I was quite suprised at how brave they were to pack the bottles like that without much concern about breakage and leaks. Also the fact that one of my facial mist was leaking, that clearly showed that they could improve on the packaging. See pic below and you will understand what I mean.)

Item delivery - 5/5
(Very fast, even with the replacement facial mist. Since the item is shipped with Europe, it was fast and I was not taxed like crazy by the Swedish customs.)

Product quality : 4.5/5
(Absolutely love how the oils and mists works on my skin. I am one satisfied customer for sure)
Overall experience : 4/5
(I will definitely repurchase from them. Maybe even buy them as Christmas gifts for my family as they have gift cards option too.)


Package came like this!


Hope this review helps you guys who want to purchase anything from Akamuti. 

Love Love!




Friday, October 15, 2010

My Fashion illustrations/drawings

Hello my Lovelies, as promised here are some of my fashion illustrations/drawings. I am learning so much as I draw everyday. I feel like I can finally put my designs and ideas on paper. Before all my drawings were horizontally enlarged and not proportionate as I did not know how to start sketching a human body which looks normal. As you can see, I am still not really good with the shading, outlining, etc... I guess as they say, practice makes perfect! 
To me this is taking one step further to achieving my dream of becoming a fashion designer! So I am happy that I took up the fashion illustration course (from London collage of arts) even though it's distance learning for now.
Do let me know what you guys think of my drawings. I don't mind if you think this looks like a kid's drawing. I am open to criticism.






Thanks for coming by my blog. 

Love Love!

Thursday, October 14, 2010

Tkb Trading haul & review and other rambles!

I have been gone a while, I was not too well in body & spirit and busy drawing for my fashion illustration course. It's freaking cold here in Sweden. OMG, I want to go back to Sunny Land now! (That's how I feel but I know it's irrational to think like that!) I have a life here and a wonderful man to be with. That keeps me going even during the cold and grey times (LOL).

Anyways, I bought some stuff from Tkb trading. For those of you who do not know this company, you can look them up here. I bought some stuff from them to make my own eyeshadows/ blush, etc... This way I know what I put it my makeup and I can do my own quality control. This is also in conjunction to my home-based makeup business as I will need a variety of colours for my clients. I provide personal makeup services. Advertisements will be out soon here in Uppsala. I used to do this back in Singapore by going to my client's home. Here I can't do that just yet as I do not own a car and still am very unfamiliar with this terrain. I already have one client whom I will be doing a makeover in Nov. So I am excited. Many more to come (I hope)!

Here is a video, talking about the things I got and how I felt about the company and their services. I didn't talk about the prices in the video because you can find that out when you browse their website. 









My overall view and grading of this company and the whole experience:

TKB trading customer service : 4/5

Product packaging : 4.5/5

Item delivery: 3/5 
( I will not blame the company as most of the times the delay is with the customs of the countries)

Product quality : No comments yet as I have yet to use them. Will do a review of the products later.

Overall experience : 4/5

Keep up the good work TKB trading!

Thanks for coming my blog my lovelies!





Sunday, October 3, 2010

Burda style & what I've been up to!

Guess what was waiting for me in the mail yesterday! Yes, it was my 1st issue of Burda style magazine.



 I have heard so many rave about this magazine. Since I am an sewing enthusiast, I had to get my hands on it. I managed to find an online magazine company which offers various crafts magazines for subscription. Here in Sweden it is quite difficult to get English magazines. Only selected newspaper stands have them.

I got my subscription for Burda style from an UK online magazine company (click here for their link). I have just browsed through. Seems very interesting! Lets see if I can use any of the patterns the attached to the magazine.

The other news is that I have started an online/e-learning Fashion illustration course at London College of fashion. It's a once week lesson. I have loads of drawing to catch up on. The tutor suggested at least 5 drawings a day. I love getting back into drawing my fashion ideas. Maybe I might share some of my artwork here. If you guys want to see of course! 

Tomorrow, I am starting salsa class with Mr Hubby! It's going to be fun. I remember we took up salsa during out courting days.... Those were the days!! Sigh! So it's going to be an exciting time for me. I am glad it is!

Thanks for coming by my wonderful people! Have a pleasant weekend!

Love Love!

Saturday, October 2, 2010

Easy office look

Have you ever had lost of ideas on what makeup look to wear for the day to the office? Fred not, I have an easy office look tutorial. Using the same techniques, you can use different colours to match your outfit to the office. To me office look is supposed to be professional looking yet pretty and girly. So no loud lashes or crazy eyeshadows to the office!



Products used are:

EYES
Mac - Painterly paintpot
Nyx - Sky pink pearl pigment
La femme - Brown e/s
La femme - Black e/s
Mac - Medium/darl mineralized skin finish ( highlight and blending)
Mac - Blacktrack fluidline
Mac - Zoom lash in zoom black

CHEEKS
Ebay - 10 blush palette (coral shimmer shade & orange shade)

LIPS
Bodyshop - Mahogany lip pencil
Bodyshop - Liquid lip colour #04


Have a great weekend!