Marvellous makeup items, super skincare items and going places – September can’t get better than that! Have a look at what Astrid and I loved this month, and where we can’t wait to go!
Dorit’s September Beauty Favourites
After spending too many months in the hot and humid hell that’s Shanghai in the summertime (which is a term that may span five months or so) I’m looking forward to Fall. So. Much. I can’t wait!!! The moment the temperature dropped beneath 30°C here, I busted out my warm eyeshadows, berry blushes, and nude lipsticks.
MAC Extra Dimension Blush in Wrapped Candy
My love for the Extra Dimension formula is well documented (here, or here), and when MAC came out with a new permanent range of blushes, I had to pick one up. This looks extremely scary in the pan, but it’s not. Trust me. And I’m as pale as can be. Applied with a soft brush, this gives the prettiest ‘just came in from the cold’-flush, and while it’s luminous, it’s not overly shimmery, which the other colours were. (Btw, as a subtle highlighter for deeper skintones? Awesome! Go and swatch them!) Gorgeous colour, also doubles up as an eyeshadow. Really, so much love!
Peripera peri’s Ink Velvet in Dollish Beige Rose
After living in warm, reddish smokey eyes the last month, I needed some neutral lips to go with them. My weapons of choice have been either Lancome’s Matte Shaker in Beige Vintage (review) or peri’s Ink Velvet in Dollish Beige Rose. The Ink Velvets have a somewhat mousse-y texture and a strong jelly babies scent that thankfully evaporates quickly. I’ve written about them before, and I still love them. The formula is long-lasting but different to other liquid lipsticks, it takes a long time to dry down completely, and hasn’t that clingy feeling on the lips. The formula has a satin to matte finish. Dollish Beige Rose is a soft beige rose colour that leaves a stain and can be topped up with a gloss without it balling up or smearing around. (Get it here, for example, about 8-9$.)
Mizon Original Skin Energy Peptide 500
After I tried my first peptide serum (The Ordinary’s Buffet, which didn’t work for me), I was on the hunt for another one. I was debating a while whether to get the super-expensive Niod Amino Isolate Serum that operates with copper peptides or not. Copper peptides are a kind of new and promising ingredient in skincare. But then I found out that Mizon’s Peptide 500 serum is actually formulated very similarly. When you buy it at the US or European site (Douglas, Peach & Lily for example), the price will rival Niod’s, but if you order it directly from Korea (it is, after all, a Korean brand), the price point is much more palatable.
Different to TO’s Buffet, I don’t break out in whiteheads when I use it. It also has a very pleasant watery texture that sinks into my skin in no time at all. It’s advertised as being combinable with other serums without any problems (truth!). Peptides need some time to have a visible effect on skin, but so far, so good (I’ve been using it for about three weeks now). It seems to leave my skin more supple, and I dig that.
Which country did you always dream about visiting?
New Zealand! I started to dream about visiting in 2000, after watching The Lord of the Rings at the cinema for the first time. Actually, when you read this, I’ll be in New Zealand for the first time. It took 17 years of waiting, and I’m so, so excited and looking forward to seeing the wonderful landscapes I’ve been dreaming about!
Astrid’s September Beauty Favourites
In contrary to Dorit, I’m still in denial that summer is over… All those days where I can sit and read in the park, walk for hours without feeling cold! But anyways, autumn usually brings some interesting color palette, so at least cheers to that!
The favorite products somehow already reflect that although I’m definitely keeping it simple for my favorites this month. It was rather difficult to just stick to three products this time around with lots of beauty shopping in the Sephora US and the Indonesian beauties my friend had managed to bring over.
Fenty Beauty Pro Filt’R Soft Matte Longwear Foundation in 330
This is my new favorite foundation for sure. I realized I wanted to always wear it ever since I got it, and not just for testing. It looks natural, still looks nice after the end of the day, never an oily/slick feeling. It’s easy to apply, especially using the Fenty Beauty foundation brush. But more importantly, it fits my skintone perfectly.
Fenty Beauty Match Stix in Rum
This thing is the bomb! I love love love this highlighter. I don’t know how they managed to make the texture just right. It has enough slick to be a blush and yet not too oily to put on my lid. And the colour. Oh my gawd!!! I love it! So perfect for my skintone.
Urbanlips Cathy Sharon Liquid Lipstick in 602 Sekar
I love the texture of this liquid lipstick. It’s definitely the best I’ve tried so far, can’t find a fault! The consistency is thin yet fully cover my lips, nondrying, lasts forever, easy to reapply (although might not last after the 3rd reapply – then take it off and reapply the whole lips). As a comparison, I tried Kat Von D (slightly too waxy), Huda Beauty (had some sticky feeling afterward), Armani (too watery, drying), Peripera (a nightmare patchy consistency on me after the first layer fades).
Running Through Golden Gate Bridge in San Francisco
I kept saying I’m a slow runner, which I still am. But I managed my running goal this year of doing 10km runs every weekend, and I’ve been enjoying it so much! I think for me it’s the best way to fall in love with running again. So when the opportunity to go to San Francisco came up in September, I realized I would really love to run through the Golden Gate Bridge as it is a great landmark (little did I know 2/3 of the bridge will be on an incline). Really, such a great way to sightsee! We stopped a lot for pictures, and we had one of the greatest time in our life :).
