Daiso finds

All from Daiso!

I have always wondered if the makeup from Daiso really works. Since I have been dying to experiment some of the makeup items, I decided to purchase and try it out.

Each item at Daiso costs $2, so four items would amount to $8 – a pocket friendly price, and in this entry I would discuss how effective these items are and how it worked for me.

Item #1 – Sponge for Foundation / BB cream 

I understand that some people might be paranoid about the makeup they use, especially when buying from Daiso because the cost is only $2 per item and it might be unreliable.

The last thing we want is breaking out in acne the following day after using cheap makeup. Also, price might be a surrogate indicator of quality and hence the perception of Daiso products is that the quality is low.

If you don’t trust the cosmetics from Daiso, there are other beauty products like nail buffer, double eyelid tape, makeup sponges, cuticle remover, etc.

And as you can see in the picture above, I bought the makeup sponge. $2 for 12 pieces. And if I used 5 times per sponge before I dispose it, it’s 5 cents per usage! Great buy, right?

(I am assuming that using 5 times per sponge is acceptable because I know of people who use their sponges for weeks before disposal. Think of the bacterial buildup. Yikes.)

Item #2: Eyebrow pencil

Here’s how the tip looks like.

Tested at the back of my hand. 

Will this cause you to break out in acne? I doubt so.

Firstly, it is used at the brows in little quantities so it can’t possibly cause your entire face to break out in acne. Secondly, the ingredients used are black iron oxide, lanolin, hydrogenated vegetable oil, alcohol, talc, Vitamin E, and some others that you can find in other brands of eyebrow pencil as well.

It glides on skin and isn’t too light or too dark and I like it. I also tried it on my brows and it works like any other eyebrow pencils!

I have no complains, and I wouldn’t mind buying it again.

Item #3: Stick foundation

When I removed the cover of the stick foundation, my first reaction was “dang!” because the colour looks really yellow. As you can probably tell, the colour of the sticker does not reflect the colour of the foundation inside at all.

So I tried it on my skin. Yeap, I was certain that it wasn’t my skin colour.

It was too yellow and too opaque for my liking.

I glided the stick foundation on my skin and regretted big time. The feeling left on my skin was extremely oily! I use BB cream all the time and I am used to the liquid formula. But this stick foundation does not feel like the usual liquid foundation at all. If I have to wear this all day, I’d rather hang myself.

I thought it might be only the top layer that is oily, so I scraped off the top and tried it again. No difference.

After that, I had to use my eye makeup remover to thoroughly get it off my skin. It was definitely a bad experience.

For foundations that are darker in colour, they may be used for contouring. And foundation colour that is lighter than your skin colour may be used as a highlighter. Foundation with a thicker formula can be used as a concealer, or to smooth out uneven skin. But I do not know what to do with a super-duper oily stick foundation.

On the brighter side, this stick is convenient to carry around and that is the only good thing about this little tube.

Do yourself a favour, save your $2 and don’t ever get this from Daiso.

Item #4: Highlighter

Now this little container reminds me of the mineral makeup that I have. I like mineral makeup because of all its benefits (and I will discuss them in another entry).

I picked this up with my eyeshadow brush and brushed it on the back of my hand, and I love how pigmented the particles are. It is shimmery and made my skin look as if it was glowing.

Next, I tried it on my nose bridge and above the apples of my cheeks.

It turned out to be really pretty, and it’s definitely glowing. It also works great as an eyeshadow to highlight the inner corners of my eyes and just below my brow bone.

This is a great buy, and I will not hesitate to buy it when I finish using it (that’s if I ever do cause my makeup seems to last forever).

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So here are my thoughts about these items I got for at a great price.

If you like to save money like I do, go pick up some fabulous items from Daiso!

..and leave the stick foundation alone.

The texture of my foundation

If you have not tried foundation before, here’s a short summary on the texture of foundation you should get.

Before finding out what type of foundation should you buy, you need to know your skin type (combination, dry, normal, oily).

Oily skin 

L’Oreal powder foundation

For people with oily skin, it is more appropriate to use powder instead of liquid so the sebum that is produced can be balanced out. If your skin is extremely oily, do look out for oil-free foundation. Powder foundation gives pretty good coverage, but it will not look as natural as liquid foundation.

Dry skin

L’Oreal liquid foundation

For people with dry skin, using liquid foundation is more ideal. As a liquid foundation is more moisturizing than powder foundation, and dry skin will look better with a satin finish.

You may also wish to use tinted moisturizer or BB cream if you prefer a light coverage. This is a preferred option among younger women.

Open pores and uneven skin

Unfortunately, most types foundation will not be able to conceal open pores and uneven skin as the coverage is too thin. As maximum coverage is needed to even out the skin, it is best for you to work with a concealer then layer foundation over.

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Hope this helped you in selecting your first foundation!

The colour of my foundation

Many girls often scratch their heads and ask, “What colour should my foundation be?”

To help those who don’t already know, I am going to discuss how to choose the right colour of foundation for yourself.

I personally feel that choosing the right colour of foundation can be pretty tricky, especially if you thought that you chose the colour correctly but turned out to be the opposite instead. Then you realised that the (wrong) colour on the compact is being magnified a few times after application to your face.

Oh no, what shall we do? Don’t worry, you can use a darker foundation for contouring, and a lighter one for highlighting purposes. Or perhaps for a costume party. Remember, don’t throw that wrong colour away because there will always be alternative uses.

ZA two-way cake – favourite among many girls!

First and foremost, the colour of your foundation should be chosen based on the colour of your skin. For most of us, we have a yellow undertone.

At times, we might not want a yellow based foundation if we are already extremely yellow (I’m Chinese). Instead, we would perhaps opt for a foundation with a pink base to neutralise our skin colour. The yellow based foundation, however, looks most natural on most skin tones.

But remember, we want the foundation to disappear on our skin and not let it make us look fairer or tanner.

Next, we need to decide how we would like our complexion to be. In this case, application is key. If we prefer a natural coverage, we should apply only a thin layer so it would be sheer. This sheer coverage should cover some blemishes, yet does not hide the shadows on our face.

Speaking of which, have you seen some ah lians who cake their face with a solid colour and use thick black eyeliner? It is quite disturbing, really, knowing that they only own a foundation compact, a kohl pencil and a comb (for super straight long hair). Don’t ever do that, please! We should have natural looking shadows on our face, not a flat piece of colour that reminds me of brown paper.

Before purchase, we need to test out the foundation colour. The right place to test the foundation is on your jawline, where your face and neck merges. Also, try looking at the skin colour indoors and outdoors as there may be a difference in the colour of the foundation.

If you wanna read about texture and coverage of different types of foundation, stay tuned!