First Impression: Benefit Hello Flawless Oxygen Wow

Hello dears!

I would just like to share my first few impressions about this product. Why not a full review? Well... I lost the foundation after three times of using it. When it comes to foundations, I usually apply the product around 7 to 10 times in different days so I can give a fair and accurate review. Since I've only used this a few times, I would only consider this my "first impression."

Benefit Hello Flawless Oxygen Wow

I really find the name of this foundation funny. My officemates and I are fond of doing the Doge impressions for more than a year now and that "wow" at the end just reminds me of the memes. Haha!

Anyway, the shade I have is "Cheers to Me" Champagne. This foundation is available in 10 shades according to the website.

The one I have is the deluxe or sample size. This only holds 5ml while the regular size has 30ml. The sample's packaging is pretty close to the regular-sized product and it also is a pump bottle. It's pretty handy when you're traveling. I like that you can see how much product is left from the transparent packaging and the design is just really pretty—something I expect from Benefit.

Below are the important details on the labels:

And more info from the website:

Our brightening liquid foundation builds from light to medium coverage for a natural complexion you can believe in. It's you...just more luminous & healthy looking.

• Oil-free
• Hydrating benefits
• Broad-spectrum SPF 25 PA+++ *

*Our foundation’s superb protection, explained: SPF stands for the protection grade of the UVB filter. PA refers to that of the UVA filter. The stars indicate the level of protection with three-stars being the highest.

Okay, so on to my thoughts about the product. First of all, I like that it has SPF 25 and PA+++. That's something that I like seeing when it comes to products for the skin because sun protection is always a must for me so if a product has it (SPF 25 is pretty decent), then that's always good news for me. 

I also like that they have warm shades. Although it's not shown on my hands as seen on the photo because that's actually my palm and my face is pretty warm so this shade is actually pretty close to my face (my face is a little darker compared to my body because it is exposed to the sun more often).

The coverage is light but buildable to a medium. Having to deal with a lot of pimple scars would be a problem though because this foundation cannot conceal them alone and that is why I rather get foundies with thick coverage as to fasten the makeup application process. 

The consistency is not really watery but not thick at all so it glides on skin pretty easily. Spreading it on the face would not be very hard so you can easily get that even application. It's super lightweight too!

The finish is a bit dewy—something that I am not a fan of because of my oily skin. My oiliness can easily make any matte makeup dewy in a matter of an hour so dewy finishes aren't very desirable for me. I go for foundations that help lessen the shine. :P

For the few times I used this, I didn't get any breakouts nor skin irritations. I actually liked the foundation when I applied it because of the warm shade and the feeling that I am not wearing foundation at all because it is so lightweight. But after around 4 hours, the product is caking on my face and it happened on all three days that I used it. I dunno why. I thought that this being oil-free can prolong the wearing time, but it did not for me. So oh well.

As for the skin benefits, I can't comment on that because... well, I only used it three times! :P

And those are my thoughts about this product. If you've been using this longer, do share your experience! I'd like to know if I should give it a second chance. :)

Cheers,

DAWN

FOTD : A Happy 26 Year Old Me!

Hey loves

It's my birthday! YAYYYY!!!

I'll be celebrating with loved ones in a couple of hours so the moment I finished doing my makeup, I grabbed my cam and took pictures so I can share with you the look I have right now. :P

So this is what I currently look like.

I chose some of my favorite makeup for today. Here they are...

I'll update the post with the names of every product when I get home later.

As for the eyes, I made a simple nude-mauve combination.

And of course, my favorite winged eyeliner look is there!

 I also used my favorite lipstick, MAC Ruby Woo. My mom always tell us to wear red on our birthdays because it's a celebration. I dunno what culture that's from... is it Chinese or Filipino? Anyway, it's good that my lippie looks awesome with my blouse!

  

 So that's all for now. Gonna go spend the day with the friends and family! Wooot! Maybe I'll blog about my birthday celebrations in a few days. :)

Have a great day, guys! Love ya!

Cheers,

DAWN

Benefit Hoola Ultra Plush Lip Gloss

Hello dears!

My sister gave me this travel size Benefit lip gloss that would give you a fun and natural pout that's perfect for the incoming summer season!

Benefit Hoola Ultra Plush Lip Gloss

I really like the Hoola Blush/Bronzer from Benefit so I was happy to receive the lip gloss version of it.

Here's the product info from their website:

Why we love it!

Our new plush glosses glide on extra smooth and feel ahhh-mazingly silky and luxurious. The six irresistible shades, from sultry nudes to punchy pinks, come in soft-squeeze tubes with a custom tip designed for perfectly even application. Beauty bonus: They’re the perfect partners for our bestselling box o’ powders!

• dandelion (soft pearly pink)
• dallas (dusty rose)
• sugarbomb (shimmering pinky nude)
• CORALista (sheer coral)
• bella bamba (sheer bright watermelon)
• hoola (shimmering golden nude)

Details

15.0 mL, 0.5 US fl. oz

Beauty tip

To create a beautifully pulled-together look in seconds, pair your favorite gloss with its complementing box o’ powder.

For the list of ingredients, please visit their website.

Like most of the travel size glosses I own, the packaging is a squeeze type tube. Not really a fan of that kind of dispensing though (I like those with applicators). But I like that the tube is transparent so you can easily see the beautiful shade of the product as well as the amount remaining.

The shade is very sheer nude equipped with bronze shimmers. It smells good but very mild. The consistency is just a little thick but not sticky nor greasy.

I find it too sheer for my liking... maybe I'm just used to applying pigmented lip products. This would be great on top of a warm, bold lipstick though. :) 

Anyway, if you like sheer glosses, then I think you will love to wear this, especially if you're planning to go to the beach and get a beautiful tan!

Cheers,

DAWN

Unboxing : Benefit BDJ Box

Hey dears!

I'm back in Manila! Hooooray! I have loads of stuff to share with you and tons of products awaiting to be reviewed. But for now, I'll share one of the handful of packages that arrived to my house when I was out of the country for the past 3 weeks...

Benefit BDJ Box

I believe this is the box for the month of June.

This is actually my second box from BDJ Box and I'm so glad that I got a specialty box and it's a Benefit one! I feel so lucky. :D

It comes with quite a number of Benefit samples! As seen on the photo above, the names, descriptions, and corresponding prices are listed.

Anyway, here are individual shots of each sample:

Porefessional PRO Balm

Fake Up Concealer

Big Easy BB

Stay Flawless Primer Stick

It's Potent Eye Cream

Lollitint

Benetint

I also got some coupons for services I can avail at selected Benefit counters around the metro:

And lastly, they provided something like a catalogue of all the pretty Benefit products:

I'm very, very satisfied with this box. I'm thinking if I should avail another box soon... BDJ just delivers a great box every month which I read about from my fellow bloggers' posts. 

I can't wait to try my samples!

What do you think of the Benefit BDJ Box?

Cheers,

DAWN

A Makeup Tutorial Session from Clinique PH

Hey everyone!

Last Friday I went to Trinoma because I booked a tutorial session from Clinique Philippines. I get to have a makeover done by one of their consultants and they'll be using Clinique skincare products that suit my skin. Here's what I looked like after the makeover:

What do you think?

I booked this because my friends, Helen and Robin, convinced me to try it out. I wasn't really in the mood to get out of the house during the long weekend but I realized that I'm on the hunt for other skincare products that I can try. I do believe that my current routine is good enough but maybe there are other products out there that can treat my skin problems better. So why not try the workshop and learn what among Clinique's skincare range would work on my skin best. Clinique is, afterall, one of the major brands that focus on skincare and cosmetics.

So before I introduce the products that was used in my session, here are before and after pictures of me:

Haha! I look weird and so dull without makeup! The right photo, on the other hand, looks so colorful and cheery.  

 The consultant tasked to do my skincare and makeup was Cathy. She was hands-on with explaining every product used on me. She knew exactly what to apply as soon as she analyzed my skin. 

And so, here are some of the products that were used in the tutorial. I didn't get to take photos of every product but I made sure to take photos of the ones that were very interesting for me and those that were highly recommended by Cathy.

 Clinique Anti-blemish Solutions

This is the range that deals with the problems I've been encountering for more than a decade. Cathy didn't use all three products though...

...she only used this for my moisturizer. Cathy said this will keep me hydrated without getting my skin very oily. It feels light on the skin!

To add more moisture to my skin, she applied Moisture Surge. It's also light and actually feels like gel made of water. It dries fast when applied and made my skin very soft.

She then applied the Pore Refining Solutions Stay-Matte Hydrator to keep my skin shine-free. I can't really say if this worked since I got oily after 3-4 hours. I dunno if it just didn't work on me or maybe the amount of moisturizers were too much? Not sure but I wish I get to use this more so I can be more accurate in my initial review.

And let's move to the makeup part...

She combined these three foundations to achieve my color wherein Cashew has the highest amount. She also combined their CC Cream. After blending it on my face, she topped it off with powder.

She asked me if I wanted nude eyes or smoky. Of course I chose smoky because I love bold eyeshadows! :P

 She used this for my eye makeup. I was worried just because it's blue. I don't do blue smoky eyes much just because it can get drag-like. In the end, it wasn't too dark but I wasn't fond of the finished look. I guess it was just okay. Not something I would do on me but it's just... okay, I guess. 

 For the lips, she used these very, very beautiful shades—Curviest Caramel and Mightiest Maraschino. Combined, they made an awesome peachy pink shade.

So those are the notable products used for my makeup tutorial with Cathy of Clinique PH. She was so nice to arrange the products she used from the first one she applied to the last one so that incase I decide to purchase some of them, I know how to use them. See the photo below to check it out:

 And what do you think of the look?

And also, they gave the people who attended the workshops some freebies! Two lucky ones will get full-sized products. Unfortunately, I wasn't one of them. Oh well.

But here are the products I got!

Super happy that I get to take home these. I got a free makeover and skincare lesson and I also got free stuff! Thanks, Clinique! :D

So do check out your favorite brands if they are doing workshops or seminars. You get to learn a lot and discover new products that can help you with your skin or other beauty concerns. I love going to those because I get to learn new stuff everytime about the brand and their products. 

One of the products I am eyeing on besides the products used on me in the tutorial is this:

 Clinique Even Better Clinical Dark Spot Corrector

My skin's ultimate enemies are my dark spots that I got from blemishes. I'm looking for good products that can help me deal with that and I really, really hope that this can be my ally. It's quite pricey at P4k+ but if it works, then it's so worth it! Time to save up!

Anyway, other products I got while I was at Trinoma (and SM North which was on their 3-day sale) that day are the following:

 I answered Benefit PH's survey and they gave me all these samples for free!

 My second bottle of Ciracle's Vitamin Source C-20 — Php 1,2k+

 ZA Perfect Solution Restoring Collagen Cream — Php399.00 (original price is Php 700+)

 Flormar Mat Touch Foundation — around Php 700 but got this at 10% off

 Biokos Vital Nutrition Eye Shield Treatment — Around Php 400-500

Been looking for an affordable eye cream. Hoping this can help slow down aging. Haha!

Beyu Soft Liner in Black — Php 450-500

Bought this because my sister took my very black eyeliner to Australia. Haha!

So that's all for this post, guys. :)

Cheers,

DAWN