Valen’s Vanity Square

I have been using Elianto Duo Wear Pressed Powder for more than a year and like it very much. Its powder is light, soft and provides certain extent of shine control. Although its coverage is consider light, I’m fine with it because it does help to brighten up my complexion naturally and does not look like I have put on any make up.

The only problem I have with it is, I tend to break its casing; all three that I’ve used!

Should I blame their design, casing quality or myself? I don’t know! Haha! May be I’m just a rough gal.

To avoid more ‘casing casualties’ (that’s my excuse) I decided to try a new product - Maybelline’s Clear Smooth Minerals Powder Foundation (current price: RM49.90).

I’ve never used any mineral face products before, but since they are generally claimed as the most natural and healthy products for the skin, so I thought I could give it a try. Using Elianto has not triggered any pore clogging or blemish problems (also one of the reasons why I like it). I hope this mineral powder one won’t, too.

So far, I’ve used it once. The coverage is considered satisfactory, but one has to be careful when applying. Start with just a little amount of the powder on the brush and slowly add on if you need heavier coverage. In fact, the point of using this mineral powder is to be able to use the least amount of powder to achieve the intended coverage. The result looked pretty natural if applied correctly (remember to read the instruction first).

Make sure your face is dry or not oily when applying. Otherwise the powder will stuck at those areas and makes your face looks patchy.

Maybelline Clear Smooth Minerals Powder Foundation comes with a kabuki brush. I also got a casing to contain the powder and the brush because there was a promotion 2 weeks ago at one of the pharmacies.

The kabuki brush - made from soft goat hair - is, well, not as soft as I interpreted from its name. It’s rather ‘pokish’, haha! (is there such a word at all?) But may be it is supposed to be in such a way so that the application is more even.

Anyway, I will be using this mineral powder foundation often from now onwards. If I don’t update any further about this product, that means everything is fine. If there’s bad news, I will let you know!

Do you agree that packaging is one of the very essential factors besides quality that make a particular brand popular? Stylish and luxurious packaging is undeniably an enticing factor to prompt consumers to purchase. After all, who wouldn’t want to be recognized as ‘sophisticated’, ‘stylish’ or ‘tasteful’?

How would you look at a man that uses a Shaeffer or Waterman pen, versus one that uses Papermate pens? Not that Papermate pens are not good or whatever. They are good quality pens that are economical to use, very practical and lasting. (In fact, I still use Papermate ballpens now and then.) But you can’t deny that superior product packaging can make a lot of difference to the sales of a brand.

It’s the same with beauty products. Be it a blusher, an eye color, a lipstick or perfume, if they are contained in lovely, charming bottles and jars, you may already feel more beautiful by just looking at them, even before you start applying.

Don’t agree? Look at this range of beauty items from Jill Stuart…

Some of the cosmetics from Jill Stuart….

Mirror, mirror in my hands, I’m sure I will be the fairest of them all….

There must be some magical potion in these bottles. I would no longer need a fairy godmother’s wand to turn me into a princess…

Won’t you feel ‘princessy’ by just holding them in your hands? I would be like living in a fairy tale if I have these gorgeous stuffs on my dressing table! Haha!

*Sigh* Why am I not in KL….

Saw a cut-out coupon in yesterday’s newspaper. If I were to be the first 50 people to bring along that coupon to Dior’s counter in Metrojaya @Midvalley this week, I would be able to redeem a free make-up service plus one free portrait (worth RM180) taken by a professional photographer! I have been wanting to do that but didn’t really want to spend money on it, hehe. This is a good opportunity and I’m not in KL!

Anyway, this promotional activity is held in conjunction with the launch of Dior’s Goldrush Collection Summer Look 2008. The collection of course consists of a range of cosmetics, from blusher to eyeshadow, lip gloss and a whole bunch of stuffs. But what is so special about this collection is…

Limited-edition luxurious pendant adorned with dazzling crystals on a chic satin ribbon to tie around the neck. Open it and you’ll find a creamy golden highlighter for eyes, lips and cheeks, to help you create the perfect sun-kissed glow.

How much is it? I only know that it costs USD55! May be I should drop by Dior’s counter at Gurney Plaza this weekend and find it out myself. Nope, not going to buy it, just checking out for fun, hehe.

Would you be please to know if there is a brand of cosmetics that is stylishly packaged, and comes with printed instructions, but will not burn a big hole in your pocket (compared with other brands, such as Benefit or Stilla)? Well, now we have one; our very own Malaysian cosmetic brand – Beautilicious, which was launched last September.

I’m not going to say much about it, just look at some of the products they carry:

Aren’t these make-up kits gorgeous? Felt excited by just looking at them, right?

You know what, I think you’d better head to their website now and see more for yourself, as well as to find out where to get them. Yes, you HAVE to visit their website. It’s so cool, so chic. I bet you will fall in love with it at first sight.

To read about the founder and how this beauty brand was brought to the world, click here.

I’ve never used cosmetics from Red Earth although this brand has been in the market for rather a long time. In fact, I don’t see many Red Earth outlets around, even in KL.

However, things have changed. Rest assured that we can feel more of Red Earth’s presence from now onwards, following its recent partnership with beauty retailer SASA to market its products.

As a start, enjoy a little summer luxury with their latest Spring/Summer Collection – Summer Splash 2008 - that features shades of pink, gold, champagne and bronze.

The collection includes an Eye Kit and a Face Kit, both comes with a trendy gold case that can be also used as a clutch. How cool is that?

Eye kit - For sparkling summer eyes!
Kit contains:

• One Mineral Infused Eye Primer
• One Pure Mineral Eye shadow
• Two Pearly Cream Eye shadows
• Choose Malibu Beauty for pretty, girlie hues or Sunset Paradise to make eyes in gold

Face kit - Let the sun go to your head and get cheeky!
Kit contains:

• Two Vitamin E enriched Illuminating Cream Blush
• A short-handled Foundation Brush for on-the-go touch ups.
• Choose Miss Sunshine for a flirty flush to get you noticed, or Summer Romance for a softer glow.

I haven’t dropped by Sasa to check out the price myself. From what I read on the newspaper, each kit costs RM84 - a rather affordable price I would say. Why not check it out at your nearest Sasa outlet yourself?

I love colorful palettes, be it blusher or eyeshadow. But these palettes (below) are just too pretty to be used!

Clinique Fresh Bloom All Over

YSL Palette Pop (RM188)

Laneige Snow Bloom

The Body Shop Blushing Daisy (RM79)

Dior Flower Blossom (RM169)

I have a bottle of Benetint. Absolutely love it. I used up almost half a bottle, and thought it could last me for another 3 months or so. But then I lost a quarter of it yesterday!!! I was traveling and had the bottle (inside its box) in a carrying case together with a whole lot of other skincare and beauty stuffs inside.

I didn’t realize that the bottle cap wasn’t screwed up properly. By the time I got home and unpacked, half of what’s left in the bottle had spilled, gone, wasted!

What remains in the bottle now may last me one month or so. I’m not sure if I want to get another bottle of Benetint, or try out new products from Benefit. There are some interesting products I have in mind though.

Benefit Pink to Please ($30)

Pink pleases you and gold gets the guy. This palette comes with three eye shadows and three lip creams. The shades of tender pink and seductive gold are made for mixing & matching to create a warm, soft, ethereal look.

Erase Paste ($26)

Signs of stress & fatigue are a thing of the past with this innovative formula. This concentrated, creamy, blendable concealer instantly brightens & camouflages all-in-one. The three brightening neutral shades give every gal correction perfection. Comes with a step-by-step instruction and a little spatula.

Spring ’08 Creaseless cream shadow/liners ($18)

3 new shades for spring - sterling pink, brushed copper and rose metal - designed to flatter all skin tones in a smudge-proof cream. Use them to line, shade & contour your eyes.

Miss Popularity ($24)

A soft, white shimmering highlighter in all the right places you need and you’re “all that” just like that.
Easy steps:

• For bright eyes - apply to the triangle of the eyes & blend.
• To perk up your smile - apply to the outer corners of lips & blend.
• To slimify your nose… apply 3 dots down the middle & blend.
• To enhance cleavage… apply above your bra line and blend.

I don’t know how much these items are priced in MYR. The prices quoted are in USD. My estimation is that you have to multiply the price (USD) by 4.5 or 5, e.g. Pink to Please - $30 x 4.5 = RM135. I probably can only afford to get ONE of the listed items above.

Image source: Benefitcosmetics.com

More than 2 months ago I blogged about L’Oreal Paris Bare Naturale Gentle Mineral Makeup, SPF19 sunscreen. Finally it’s here in Malaysia!

A couple of days ago I saw it in Guardian pharmacy (or Watson?) in Gurney Plaza, but not in the smaller outlets. Its price is around RM65.90 (or RM56.90? Man, I’m getting really forgetful these days). They are 4 or 5 shades to choose from.

Although I’m quite tempted to buy one to try, I don’t think I will buy it now coz I just bought a compact powder from Elianto recently. Furthermore, I would like to read some local reviews about this product first before I try.

If you have been always keen to try mineral make-up, then you probably should check it out at the major Guardian or Watson outlets one of these days.

If you are looking for a cosmetic brand that carries a full range of products AND is kind to your purse, you might want to give Elianto a try.

So far I’ve tried three of their make-up products, a set of brushes and a bottle of brush cleanser.

Lip gloss
I bought a lip gloss from their kiosk last year. Can’t remember how much it cost, but it’s definitely under RM20. Honestly, I don’t like it. Not because of the color or quality of the lip gloss, but more of the faulty pen-like design of the lip gloss. The mechanism is designed such that you have to turn a knob at one end of the pen to push the gloss out at the other end where the brush is. But no matter how much I turned, the amount that came out was always that small. At the end I got so frustrated with the turning that I decided not to use it anymore.

More recently, I visited their kiosk again and made a purchase. This time I’m quite happy with what I bought.

DuoWear Pressed Powder SPF15 (RM35 including case; refill RM25)

I like its microfined powder that gives a sheer but silky soft coverage. I use it directly after a moisturizer. It’s good for touching up too. It is enriched with vitamin E for anti-oxidant and anti-aging effect.

The next face powder I would like to try: Baked Face Powder

• Unique baked face powder compressed into pan.
• Ultra-fine powder to glide-on for smooth and natural look.
• Apply on with brusher and gently blend it across face for the best result.

One Touch Blusher in Berry Mauve (RM15)

I love this! I just have to gently pad a few times on my cheeks to achieve that natural rosy glow. I know Christian Dior (probably some other brands as well) has something similar, but it costs over RM100!

The next blusher I would like to try: Baked Blusher (Marble)

• Unique baked blusher with two colour shade with same base tone, compressed in into the pan, with strong compression and colour effect.
• Silky soft finish and shimmering. Once glide-on, the colour blend smoothly and naturally.

9-piece Make-up Brusher set (RM55) and brush cleanser (RM18)

• 1 Face brush, 3 eye shadow brushes in different sizes, 1 small angled brush (for the eyebrow), 1 eyes hadow sponge, 1 mascara brush, 1 small lip brush, 1 eyebrow brush.

Deep down in my heart, the ultimate make-up brush set to get is of course from Bobbi Brown! But it’s way too expensive for me at the moment. Elianto’s brushes have bristles that are quite soft, too. At least they are better than the cheap brushes bought from the drugstores (those bristles made my face itchy).

*****************************************************

I haven’t tried Elianto’s eye colors and lipstick yet. Guess they’ll have to wait for the next round.