Hello everybody! The makeup bag I got to dig through this month belongs to the ever so lovely, Pauline of Catpacking! I thought it was high time I did a feature of her since I never fail to include her in my posts. I mean seriously, there are very very few posts on this blog where I do not make even the slightest mention of Makeup Queen Poreen. Our taste in makeup in terms of colors and consistencies is very similar and I find it very difficult not to want the things she raves about (and I am told the same is true of her haha!) Really excited to get started so here we go!

A quick look at her blog and you'll see immediately that more than anything else, Pauline is all about skin. She talks a lot about having the right products for cleansing and nourishing her skin and all her primers and the bases she's tried. It then comes as no surprise just how many of these products she has in her makeup bag as you will see later on.

"I've had (the NARS Translucent Crystal Light Reflecting Pressed Setting Powder) forever. I've already hit pan, but it's still usable and there doesn't seem to be an end to it." It's a great powder if you don't want to alter the color of your base and great for setting makeup as well. It isn't so great if you're looking for oil control though. "It's better for drier skin. So it's nice, but not something I'd repurchase."

The NYX Powder Blush in Pinched has been lauded as one of the top Nars Orgasm dupes in the drugstore. Pauline says though that it is "not as shimmery as orgasm; there's more color than shimmer." This color is also a very big deal since she normally isn't one for coral tones. "I like this though the color is uplifting." I feel that a review of this coming soon on her blog so watch out for that! 

Pauline absolutely love, love, loves the Koh Gen Doh Aqua Foundation. I see her talk about it all the time. "I have a lot of bumps and textured skin so I need a smoothening thing." She spends quite a bit of time on her base makeup (often up to 25 minutes!) She used to use a Real Techniques Expert Face Brush to buff this in or her Too Cool For School sponge, but recently she's been using this method to apply it.

The Fairydrops Platinum Mascara is something she and I both love. She posted a review of the Waterproof one recently and I did one for the Film Type one sometime last year. We both agree that, "it’s an all-in one: lift, volume, length, curl, and without any flaking." However, it is getting harder and harder to find these anywhere. "It's magic. What am I going to do without it?" What indeed :(

"I first saw this on Jen of frmheadtotoe. Everything she uses is so good." The Lioele Automatic Eyebrow Pencil is what Pauline has been using since she recently got into brows and says that, "it's nice for beginners." The shade she uses is quite dark, a grey-brown as a lot of the lighter ones tend to be too reddy-browns which just make brows look orange. 

This lipstick is a fairly new addition to her collection and is in fact her first MAC product. She initially stayed away from MAC lipsticks because "they dry your lips and turn it into a desert." This isn't the story with MAC's See Sheer as it is a Lustre so the finish is more moisturizing than the others. "The official color description is a grapefruit pink, but I think it's a muted warm coral." 

Fai"

The Maybelline FaceStudio Master Conceal is also very new to her collection as she had bought it the day before we met up. Her first impressions of it were along the lines of how light it was and how it was "liquid enough for undereye concealing, but not too slippy for spot concealing." She also says that it's quite pigmented and a little of this goes a long way. 

"It smells nice!" Pauline is really cute sometimes :)) She says EOS Lipbalm in Strawberry Sorbet is better than her Kiehl's Lip Balm #1 in Mango during the day, but she combines the two at night for when she's going to bed. She also says that the EOS is great under lipstick, but not so good for touch ups because it will stain the the lip balm.

Pauline didn't used to be a fan of the Benefit Porefessional, but this has since changed when she discovered that the trick was to apply the smallest amount so it wouldn't look patchy under makeup. "I don't know if it's a security blanket or if I really need it, but I cannot go out without it. It just feels wrong. My makeup lasts longer with it so why stop a good thing."

"I don't do powder highlighters. It's either a lot of shimmer or a lot of glitter." So she uses the Benefit Watt's Up. It's a cream formula that is better for blending into the skin. Plus it comes in a stick which is always good. Other highlighters also tend to be more white or gold colored and when they do get warmer the shade takes on a more pink tone. "It’s a golden champagne highlighter it look more natural on my warm skin than a pink highlighter."

Pauline has quite a few skin concerns so really addressing those with her makeup and skincare is very important to her. "I am a person with acne prone skin who wants to pretend I don’t have acne prone skin and does not want to aggravate it." She also feels like something is off when she puts on makeup and doesn't do the primer + concealer + base + powder formula. So when I asked her what she would call her makeup bag (I jokingly suggested "All Your Base Are Belong To Us") we came up with Cover All Your Bases. Because with five out of ten items in her makeup bag devoted to skin, Pauline's makeup priorities are very clear indeed.

P.S. Poreen and I snapchat each other a lot 

Just

Hello everyone! Long time no see~ A bit of time has passed and we've gone from Spring to Summer in a flash. April has been a very busy month for what with me doing the work of four people on the weekdays. Plus I’ve been out every weekend of the last month as well to keep myself happy and sane. That said I really should apologize for the lack of activity on here, but I made it a point to post this twice this week to make up for it. 

In lieu of a favorites post this month (because really, I'm still using all the same stuff and it isn't so fun talking about it over and over again >_<) I thought I would show you the makeup look I'm trying out this season. It's just a quick post today, but I promise you I have something scheduled that's going up on this blog real soon!

It's a pretty simple look that's really light and the focus is really on looking fresh-faced. We're already well into the summer here and it goes up to 40° C or 104° F. Crazy hot! Even if you're just staying indoors, you really feel how high the temperature is is. Everyone feels oily, sticky, and more than a bit gross. This is why it was important to me to at least look like I felt fresh.

 

(please excuse the light >< nothing can make it look less warm when the sun is that strong #TheCurtainIsMyFilter)

After doing my base with my Borjois 10-hour Sleep Effect foundation in #72, I  mixed my Becca Shimmering Skin Perfector in Moonstone with some foundation for concealing my under eye circles. I also put it on the tops of my cheeks, the bridge of my nose, and on my brow bone. I powdered everywhere, especially on my temples, down the sides of my nose, and along my hairline using the Innisfree No-Sebum Mineral Powder with a Real Techniques Powder Brush to dispel greasiness in those areas.

Tided up my brows a bit with the Tony Moly Delight Circle Lens Mascara. I lined my eyes (mostly tight-lining and in between lashes) with my Dolly Wink Eyeliner and put on two coats of Eyeko Eye Do Mascara for definition and to wake up the eyes. I also put a bit of the bronzey shade from my unidentifiable Dior palette in the outer V with a BYS Synthetic Domed Shadow Brush.

For a bit of color I used my trusty Borjois Cream Blush in #04. And on my lips I layered Chanel Rouge Allure Velvet Lipstick in #37 L’Exubérante (borrowed from aunt haha) over my C.O. Bigelow Mentha Lip Shine.

Aside from looking fresh, the point was to look glowing not greasy.So for this look, I put very little on the eyes and spent more time bringing light and fighting shine on my face. To add a teeny bit of interest I popped on a bright lip color that was very warm and summery, but had enough cool notes in it to balance the warmth of the skin and the golden sheen from the highlighter and the eyeshadow. 

This look stays on the whole day for me. I've gone to concerts and out walking with this on and it still looks decent come night-time even if I applied this in the late morning. That said I still haven't found a way to beat the heat. Any tips besides air-conditioning and cold drinks? Stay cool this summer!

Hi everyone! For March I am featuring one of my best friends for TMB. Ladies and gents, I give you the makeup bag of Danie from That Nugu! I went to the same grade school and high school as Danie, but we really only became friends in Uni. This girl is absolutely amazing! She is incredibly smart, talented, and kind-hearted. I could not have gone through university and post-grad life without her. We aren’t very much alike in terms of personality and personal taste, but there are two things we both care very much about: Make-up and Korean Pop Culture (this of course includes the road makeup shops because makeup is very much part of pop culture in Korea). Both of these things feature a bit in this TMB as you will see.

Her influences are mostly Korean and East Asian beauty bloggers and makeup artists and she is very good at keeping track of all the latest K-beauty trends. I remember how she got me into BB creams and the gradient lip when those were just starting to get popular. Her current look is a little more like a mix of Cheon Song Yi (Jun Ji Hyun’s character in You Who Came from the Stars) and 4 Minute’s Hyuna with her bright red lips.

The day I met up with her was a red-lip day and she had a NYX Lipstick in Snow White. I remember how she really wanted a red lippy after she saw the teasers for Hyuna’s Red. “It’s the perfect red I was looking for. It doesn’t stay on as long as I want it to, but I am in love with the color. It makes my skin and teeth look whiter and brighter.”

As an alternative, she also brought with her an A'Pieu The Red Tint in Berry Red. “I bought this by accident haha it was on sale for KRW 5,000 and I got the last piece. The tint is a blue-y red and it can be slightly dark and bordering on vampy. I usually use the gradation technique. The other side is a gloss which is really pretty in fairness.”

Underneath her rep lip, Danie uses a Nivea Med Protection SPF 15 balm (see Danie's review here). “I’m taking acne meds which makes my skin drier. Including my lips. I need my lip balm to have that extra moisturizing factor. It’s my favorite.  I’ve bought more than four sticks of this already."

Because she has sensitive skin, she really needed a base that was lighter and non-irritating. Gone are the days when she slathered on thick Etude House BB Creams. She has since moved on to a BB with a better formula for her skin concerns, the Céleteque Dermo Science Brightening Multi-Benefit BB Cream “I chose this because it’s non-comedogenic – it won’t block your pores. I broke out because I started using a lot of makeup to cover my pimples, which only made them get worse.”

After a few months of derma treatments when the acne was less active, she started using this to conceal pigmentation. “The coverage is light to medium so it’s enough to cover redness, but not blemishes. The texture is thin and watery.” Aside from that, she also says it’s really affordable. “It’s not an exact color match, but it blends very well onto the skin. My derma can’t tell I have makeup on and says my skin has improved. She had a magnifying mirror and everything so it’s pretty seamless.”

For concealer she uses the Misha Under Eye Brightener, a brand that has her favorite boy group as the endorsers. “I got this from a recommendation by a Korean Youtuber, She was looking for a cheap concealer that works. When I tried it ‘whoa coverage!’ I use it on my eye bags. My only problem is it’s kind of thick and it’s not as easy to spread so you have to be quick and you need powder to set it or it gets cake-y. It’s really good medium to heavy coverage and it costs less than KRW 3,000."

When I opened up her makeup bag, one of the first things I noticed was how many products she had for eyes. She had the Too Faced Boudoir Eyes collection I gave her last year. “I really like that it’s safe for office wear. I usually use my fingers and the texture is super smooth. It has light browns, beiges, a grey, and purples. They aren’t too heavy and even the dark colors go on pretty light. I like it even though the color in the pan isn’t true to what color it is on your hand or eye. Satin sheets is my favorite color and looks pink in the pan, but it’s gold on my eyes.”

Her current eyeliner is the Innisfree Gel Liner in #07 Brown. Danie used to like using gel liners that came in pots, but has made the shift to gel pencils. “In pencil form, gels are really easy to use and are more flexible. It’s really creamy as well. I’ve had it for several months, but it still goes on creamy and it really lasts. I eye-smile and I have a lot of creasing around my eyes, but the smudging is really minimal. I just don’t like that it has shimmer. Other than that it would have been perfect."

For her lashes Danie uses a Shu Uemura Eyelash Curler (which she wrote a review on here) and the Innisfree Skinny Microcara. “This mascara is PONY’s fault. I agree with what you wrote about it in your favorites. It’s very natural, but defining and it has a really good formula which stays, but isn’t difficult to remove. It’s also good for separating lashes and it’s very light."

Brows are something she feels are necessary to every makeup look. She uses an A'Pieu Eye Fine Brow Liner in Brown. It has the tiniest nib. “It’s finer than your normal brow pencil. It’s really thin because it’s supposed to create thinner natural looking lines. I outline the shape I want with this and I fill it in with my Nature Republic Brow Powder."

The last item in her makeup bag was a decanted Victoria’s Secret Fragrance Mist in Mango Temptation.  “I like smell of sweet fruits. And you told him this so this is a Valentine’s Day gift." I may or may not have helped a mutual friend pick out her present using insider knowledge of her likes and dislikes haha, but we digress. "I find it sweet, smell and the other meaning haha. It was a non-traditional gift so plus points for that and it’s pink!” 

Danie’s makeup philosophy is all about looking bright-eyed and awake. Bright skin, bright eyes, bright lips, all of these bring her look together and give her a healthier and livelier appearance. When I asked her what we should name her kit she took her time and with the help of Google Translate, she came up with the "선명한 빛 Kit" or the Bright Light Kit, "The point is to not look dead haha~ A pop of color on the lips plus the nice base and defined eyes make me look more alive at work." Here's to looking alive!

P.S. Danie and I when we last met up~