My One Product Brow Routine | Shu Uemura Hard Formula Hard 9 Eyebrow Pencil

Eyebrows are everything. They are the single most important step in my makeup routine - besides SPF, of course. 

I'm here today to tell you all about my holy grail brow product, my ride or die since I knew filling in your eyebrows was even a thing - which was sophomore year of college. Late, I know. Safe to say all my pictures before then (and after my initial craze that led me to tweeze them into oblivion) have been permanently destroyed. Introducing Shu Uemura's Hard Formula Hard 9 Eyebrow Pencil. Paired with my e.l.f Essentials Eyeliner Brush, and the rest is history.

Shu Uemura Hard Formula Hard 9 Eyebrow Pencil

$195 HKD at Shu Uemura

7 Shades (Hong Kong and Japan) | 4 Shades (USA)

Let's start off with the coolest aspect of this brow pencil - the shape. All the Shu Uemura eyebrow pencils comes pre-sharpened in the shape of a naginata - the traditional Japanese samurai sword. Hi-ya! The unique sword-shaped tip is incredibly handy to sculpt out and define the bottom and top parts of your brows with precision, and allows for drawing fine lines to mimic natural brows. Also, this brow pencil only works when interacting with the oils in your brow hairs, so you can try to swatch this on the back of your hand but you will fail. Genius!

Shu Uemura offers this pencil in two formulas - hard 9 and hard 6 - and I've always sworn by the former, since the latter is just a tad too soft for my taste that allows for a thicker, darker application. The firmness of the hard 9 formula is absolute perfection for giving you the most naturally defined eyebrows without ever looking too harsh or fake - like, sorry to all the Dipbrow fans out there, but that stuff scares me! However, I have noticed that when the pencil becomes blunt and loses its sword-shaped tip, it never applies as nicely and my eyebrows never look as good. My shade has always been 06 Acorn - the perfect brown with a hint of grey that perfectly complements my jet black hair as well as my previously colored chestnut brown mane.

Shu Uemura Hard Formula Hard 9 Eyebrow Pencil in 06 Acorn

All Shu Uemura stores offer sharpening services, so you always have the option to bring it by (or drop it off during peak hours) and have the staff carve out the desired naginata shape. Speaking from personal experience, I've always been slightly disappointed at how much shorter my pencil is when it is returned to me. I'm talking a good inch or two, which means money wasted! The staff's explanation was always that the lead inside was broken (either from me dropping it or knocking it around) which made it much more challenging to sharpen. Either way, I decided to finally try it myself and have now (somewhat) perfected the art of sharpening with a box cutter. Just look at how tiny my old brow pencil is - I've filed it down to a tiny nubbin!

Shu Uemura Hard Formula Hard 9 Eyebrow Pencil in 06 Acorn

After I've filled in my eyebrows to my satisfaction, my final step is to take my trusty e.l.f Essentials Eyeliner Brush (which is just $1USD!) and run it through my brows to soften and perfect my look. The brush is way too thick for its intended purpose - c'mon, e.l.f., how is this thin enough for eyeliner?! - but it's the perfect shape and density for a brow brush. And voila, brows on fleek!

I don't see myself straying from this brow routine anytime soon - you just gotta stick with what works! - but I would love to hear your eyebrow routines and the products you swear by to give you flawless, glorious eyebrows. Thanks for reading!

SAMPLE SUNDAY | Fresh Black Tea Firming Corset Cream x Fresh Black Tea Age-Delay Firming Serum

New product alert! Last week, I managed to get my hands on a sample of the newest product from Fresh, the Black Tea Firming Corset Cream, and was instructed to try it in conjunction with the Black Tea Age-Delay Firming Serum to achieve a defined, contoured complexion. I had to be put on a waiting list just for a sample of this new cream, so let's put these to the test!

Fresh Black Tea Firming Corset Cream |
My current holy grail toner is the Fresh Black Tea Age-Delay Instant Infusion, so I was super excited to hear about a new product launching from the same range. And the words firming and corset sure got my hopes way up! This new cream is "a firming formula for the face and neck that provides a corset-like effect for a more lifted and defined appearance", with a thick, buttery consistency that melts into the skin - my face just drank it up! It has a soothing tea scent, just like the toner, but with more of a sweet, fruity note with the addition of goji fruit extract. Long story short, my skin seemed to really get along with the cream - plumper, bouncier - but in terms of firmness and a corset-like effect, I'm still not convinced. At most, I will say my skin felt a bit more taut, but I was disappointed to say the least that there was no visible improvement in definition and lift. Like, where my cheekbones at? Fine, maybe asking for a visible change from a face cream was asking too much. This product probably isn't targeted to those of us with younger, firmer skin to begin with, so as much as I loved how it felt on my face, I don't have the need for this as of yet. It is a pricey purchase at $95USD for 50ml, so perhaps I'll try it again in ten years or so when I need the extra help and have some extra cash!

Fresh Black Tea Age-Delay Firming Serum |
To truly maximize the results of the Black Tea Firming Corset Cream, I was told to lather this Black Tea Age-Delay Firming Serum on beforehand and after my Black Tea Age-Delay Instant Infusion. Fresh claims that this serum "smoothes the appearance of fine lines and wrinkles while providing a firmer, luminous look", and that it has a fast-absorbing formula with a corset-like effect on the skin. It has a lovely tea scent with a hint of floral with its addition of honeysuckle leaf extract. The serum is quite tacky upon application, and I have to disagree with it's fast-absorbing claims as it took a good while - almost half an hour - to absorb into my skin. Even then, it left a gooey film on my face, which leads me to believe this might be much better suited for dryer skin types. I'm sad to report that I am just not a fan of this serum, as it was just too sticky for my taste and I didn't feel any improvement in firmness - it just felt like an extra layer of skincare with no intended purpose. Perhaps it's a good solution for fine lines and wrinkles, but thankfully I can't test out those claims just yet. At $90USD for 50ml, I just don't find this at all necessary as part of my current skincare routine. I still love you, Fresh!

REVIEW | Shiseido Sheer and Perfect Foundation SPF17

New year, new me! Just kidding - same me, just with a whole lot more reviews!

My recent trip to Tokyo in October not only resulted in a five pound weight gain, but also a beauty gain in my makeup collection. Here are my thoughts on the Shiseido Sheer and Perfect Foundation SPF 17. With a name like that, do you really expect me to leave the store empty-handed?

Shiseido Sheer and Perfect Foundation SPF 17
4000‎¥‎ at Shiseido Japan | $35 USD at Shiseido, Sephora
30ml | 18 shades

Let me first put out a disclaimer that there seems to be two versions of this foundation floating around  - Shiseido Sheer and Perfect Foundation SPF 17 and Shiseido Sheer and Perfect Foundation SPF 18.  My version with SPF 17 seems to only be sold in Japan and comes with a total of 6 shades, whereas the other version with SPF 18 is being sold pretty much everywhere else in the world, and features a total of 18 different shades. Not sure why this discrepancy exists, but what's important is the actual product inside and how it performs, which I'm confident is completely identical. Now that that's out of the way, on to the review!

Shiseido claims that this foundation "cancels out the appearance of redness, blemishes and visible pores without concealing the skin's natural beauty", and that your skin will look fresh and glow with sheer perfection. The word sheer might scare some people off, but it's right up my street. The packaging is pretty straight forward - not at all glamorous but gets the job done - and its compact size makes it great for travel. 

I hypothesized, the very second I squeezed this foundation out onto the back of my hand, that this would be similar to the MAC Waterweight Foundation SPF 30 - and I was spot on. In terms of consistency, finish and wear, these two foundations are pretty much identical dupes. So in the interest of saving time, if you've already checked out my MAC foundation review and liked what you read, then you can stop here and go about your day, because I can already tell you that you'll be a fan of this Shiseido foundation. If you haven't read that review - uh, where have you been? - go take a gander then come back for some comparisons!

Just like the MAC foundation, the consistency of this Shiseido foundation is very thin and fluid, and spreads out over the skin equally as effortlessly. I would say the MAC foundation is a tad runnier while offering a hint more pigmentation and coverage - Shiseido stays true to its name in terms of being sheer. I've tried out both foundations together on multiple occasions - each base on one side of my face - and I can honestly say they look exactly the same on the skin, as if I'm wearing just one foundation all over. If you really wanted to nitpick, my MAC Waterweight Foundation in shade NC20 is a touch more yellow-toned whereas my Shiseido Sheer and Perfect Foundation in shade O20 Natural Light Ochre, while initially more brightening on the face, dries down to be a smidgen darker.

MAC Waterweight NC20 | Shiseido Sheer and Perfect O20

Both foundations are perfect for those no makeup-makeup days when all you want is to even out your skin-tone and look like you're having a good skin day - which is pretty much all I want everyday! They both give the same natural, skin-like coverage that can be built up to an almost-medium, and are equally lightweight and comfortable to wear. I didn't find either to be particularly great at diffusing the appearance of pores, and because both bases dry down to a dewy, satin finish, my oily-combination skin starts looking shiny after just two hours. The Shiseido foundation does seem to have better staying power - just an hour or two more - as I find the MAC foundation to be more easily transferable, and as I mention in that previous review, have experienced firsthand it streaking down my face during the summer months. Fingers crossed this Shiseido foundation doesn't do the same!

So in a nutshell - if you love natural, skin-like bases that don't feel heavy on the skin and are a breeze to apply, you will really enjoy this Shiseido Sheer and Perfect foundation SPF 17. If you already own and love the MAC Waterweight Foundation SPF 30, then there's absolutely no need to splurge on both. If you don't own either foundations and want just one to try out, I would say go for Shiseido purely for the better lasting power and spill-proof, travel-friendly packaging.

Thanks for reading - hope everyone is having a wonderful, positive start to the new year!