My top 12 products of 2012

Just thought I'd share my top 12 products of the past year. These are not listed in the order of favourites, but more in the order in which I use them throughout the day. With my shopping addiction, I was surprised that I consistently liked a few products, and today I will reveal which ones they are :D

11 of the 12 products, I thought that the sheet masks would take up too much space

The first fave product is actually one that I use first thing in the morning, that is my Hello Kitty Cleansing paste. Although I am not particularly fond of the scent I can overlook it because it makes my face feels so clean and soft afterwards. I like using this so much I already have a back up of it... I actually have a mini review of this here if you are interested in reading more about it.

One of my rare finds of 2012 was the H2O Face Oasis shine-neutralizing gel. I stumbled on this because I had purchased the wrong moisturizer for my friend, so instead I decided to keep it for myself. Boy am I glad for this mistake. This oil-free gel is an amazing moisturizer that not only keeps my face matte, but hydrated all day long.

Vaseline lip therapy lip balm Cocao butter - 2012 was a year that I dedicated to finding awesome lip treatments for my super dry lips. On my hunt, I found this cute little tub that was pretty good at keeping them happy. This product is good at retaining moisture in the lips but does not really add hydration to it and it worked a lot better after my lips are healed. It is great at 'sealing' the lips so that I may occasionally wear a lip products that contain beeswax.

Kose Suncut Essence in UV Protect Milk SPF50 PA+++ Waterproof is a very lovely dupe of the Shiseido Sunscreen that I adore for half the price. This product was especially awesome during the summer time, a sunscreen with decent SPF and none of the oily feeling. 

YSL anti-cernes multi-action concealer in Nude Beige - Love this creamy concealer, can't believe I spent so much money on something so little... but it is great at concealing dark circles, and it can last at least 4 hours on if I don't set it with a powder and almost twice that when I do. It has very minimal creasing and it has been my most successful concealer so far.

TheBalm Balm Shelter Tinted moisturizer - At the beginning of 2012, my skin was not at it's happiest, lots of breakout, redness and scarring so this was not enough coverage for me. However, with continuous use, my face slowly cleared up and by mid to end of 2012 my face required very minimal coverage. Between the H2O moisturizer and this TM, my skin's been feeling happy and not overloaded. I've reviewed this product here.

Shiseido eyeshadow quad in Desert Winds - I was surprised by this, but I reached for this palette more often than not. The colour in this palette is very wearable on a daily basis, the shadow last all day even without a primer. I was suprised at its pigmentation, lasting ability and its lovely texture. This palette wowed me and I dread the day I finish any of the shadows on this perfect palette!

d.j.v. Beautenizer mascara - I enjoyed this mascara more than any other fiberwig I've tried so far. When I'm finished the stash of mascara I've hoarded over the last while I will definitely consider repurchasing this. I love the fact that it does not clump when I apply it, nor does it smudge on me throughout the day although I wish that it was a darker black, since my Asian lashes are barely visible regularly. 

Too Faced Lip Crème in Naughty Nude - I'm usually a coral kind of girl, but since I found this lipstick, I've really start digging nude lips. It might also be because I've been wearing more smokey looks and this lipstick just goes so well with them without making me look like a zombie~ Swatches and my little obsessive post can be found here, just in case you want to read more ;) I actually really enjoy the rest of my Lip Crèmes which includes; Spice Spice Baby, Nude Beach, I Want Candy and Coral Fire. :)

This is the only tool in my list of products, the Clarisonic Mia. I had started using it late 2011, but results didn't show until early-mid 2012. This tool is golden! I use it in combination with several different cleanser and it does the job of removing guck and makeup off my face very well. You can see the foundation or cheek colour on the brush (which looks nasty) but makes me glad to have proof of how much was on my face. After using it my skin is clean and ready for moisturizers and face masks... which leads to my next fave...

My Beauty Diary masks - I like their entire range of masks. My skin feels pampered, moisturized and satisfied every time. I'm not sure about any lasting effect, but my skin feels and look awesome the next morning. These masks also have a very lovely scent to them. My only gripe with this? I feel like so much product is wasted as there is always a lot left in the package!

Laura Mercier Lip Silk - When my lips were super dry and everything irritated it, this was my savior. My lips are much better now, but I still use this at night when my lips needs a little pampering. Although expensive, this tube has lasted me quite a while. So for extremely dry lips (that is allergic to beeswax) do consider this awesome lip balm for supple and happy lips. :)

Is text enough or do people prefer pictures? :) Let me know if it matters :D

Random samples: first impressions

Here's my 2 cents of product samples I've used in the past few months.

Caudalie eye and lip cream - This cream feels so nice and light weight, and does a great job at moisturizing. I've only used it for a week and noticed very slight difference in my dark eye circles. However, I'm not sure if I am willing to splurge $49 on it...

Nars Radiant Tinted Moisturizer in Alaska - I wanted to love this because I've heard so much rave about it, however I can't. Within 3 hours of using this TM I start getting oily on my T-zone and cheeks. This has not happened with my theBalm TM... I like the higher SPF, but I find that it made my skin look more dull despite the oil pool later on.

Dior Hydra Life BB creme - This BB cream broke me out :( I really wanted to like this product, because I wanted to get it when I was in the US, but the results were disappointing. I'm just so glad I got to try a sample of it before purchasing the full size (a whooping $56USD!)

Phyto Phytopolleine Universal Elixir Scalp stimulant - I got this in one of my monthly subscriptions and I really love it. I have troubled skin and my scalp was not spared (please excuse me) but my scalp flakes like crazy! After my first use of this I was extremely happy that it worked so well. I will be purchasing purchased the full size of this product. It has a very strong but not unpleasant smell of eucalyptus and work quite well to maintain a healthy scalp.

Suisse Programme Gigawhite Fresh UV Shield Moisturizer SPF15 - I had a 2ml sample that lasted me 3 applications. This product smells awesome and has a little bit of SPF which I like, however I was surprised to find that it wasn't quite moisturizing enough for me... Certain areas on my face dried up throughout the day. At a whooping 83$ on Sasa, I will not be purchasing~

Neutrogena Ultra Sheer Dry-Touch Sunscreen Lotion SPF55 - This is a nice sunscreen with high SPF and covers both UVA and UVB. It dries non-sticky and smells okay for a sunscreen. I would so purchase this product if I wasn't already overstocked with them :) This is something to keep in mind next summer as it is both waterproof and sweatproof (tested from all the swimming and tubing down while on vacation.)

Apologies for not having any pictures for this post as they are mostly samples, perhaps I should take a pictures of samples before I try them out next time :)

Birthday Haul 2012 - Addicted to Dior

I spoiled myself rotten this year for my birthday :) I waited until Shopper's had their bonus point redemption to claim some products I wouldn't normally buy otherwise... Picked up two Dior skincare products and quite a few makeup products as well. Voici mon haul!

I splurged on skincare even though I know I shouldn't be trying out anything new for the next month... but the lovely smell and the nice hydrated feeling on the skin made it irresistible  I'm still in the process of testing out the products to make sure my face won't breakout (since their foundation breaks me out after a few hours of use...grr...) 

UPDATE: Both products caused me to break out. I had little pimples around my cheek/jawline as well as increased redness on my face. When I bought it back to Shopper's for an exchange the CSR told me it's my face getting use to the product... but at 65$ each, I don't feel like taking the risk to find out. Also, with the wedding less than a month away, I should not be irritating my skin!

Dior Hydra Life Youth Essential Concentrated Sorbet Essence and Pro-Youth Sorbet Crème

I went crazy with some lippies and a blush... So into nudes lately~~

From the Dior Addict collection I picked up 2 lipsticks, 222 Beige Casual and 530 Bobo, also a gloss in 257 Pink Trench

I also picked up a Rouge Dior lipstick in 314 Angelique Beige (swatched here)

Update: BOOO! I found out that the Rouge Dior formula contains beeswax after my lips started itching after I applied it. So sad because this was such a lovely colour on the lips. As always, I like natural and moisturized looking lips... This made my lips peel :(

Last but not least, I bought my first Dior blush in 533 Passion Fruit. This luxurious blush came with it's own pouch! 

So in total... I spent 140.13$ for 340$ worth of Dior products :) Tell me I did good~ haha...

Sasa Haul: Espie, JUJU Cosmetics, Sasatinnie...

So... After a stressful week of studying, I relaxed by placing my first order at Sasa.com.  Here's some pictures and first impressions on some of these products! Enjoy. ** Be warned, this post is picture heavy **

SK-II Basic Care Facial Treatment Clear Lotion (20ml) $5.40 - TBH, the only reason why I got this was because SK-II products are always so expensive and I did not feel comfortable paying so much to try out the full-size. Instead, since Sasa had this travel size bottle on sale, I decided to pick one up. Will see how long this 20 ml bottle will last and if I can see any results ^_^

sooooo tiny!

ESPIE Vitamin E + Aloe Vera Lip Treatment (3.5 g) $4.90

Here's a pictures of the ingredient list for both the Aloe Vera and the Milk Espie... on the Milk one it clearly stated beeswax, so I will stay away from that for now... But, since I can't read Chinese, I will assume the other one doesn't have it and proceed to using it :)

First impression: This lip balm does not have any distinct scent. It applies smoothly, is not sticky and leaves a satin finish. I used it last night and I've had no reaction on my mouth area. 

clear swatch on my hand

ESPIE Vitamin E and milk lipcare (3.5 ml) $3.60

Haul: Shiseido + Nars 2011

Here's some pictures of the stuff I got this past weekend.

Here's a mini haul from Sasa. I purchased the 'Shiseido Sun Protection Stick Foundation in Beige' at regular price because I did not find it at the warehouse sale. Or if it was there it was soldout before we got there =( However, on a brighter note, Shiseido had a gift with purchase and I got this travel size 'White Lucent' set for free. :)

Got these at Sasa in Market Village

Now, onto the haul from the Shiseido warehouse sale :)