Review: Chi Chi Super BB Cream

This is a review I was really excited to do as soon as I got this product, because I'd heard such good things about it and really wanted to see whether my opinion matched those of other bloggers online.

If you read the title, which I hope you did, you'll know I'm talking about Chi Chi's Super BB Cream. I read a lot about Asian BB creams and this Chi Chi BB is meant to be comparable. Me being the sceptical individual I am, I wasn't too sure about this high claim. I knew it was something I had to try out for myself to see how it performed. In the last week, I actually received my Missha Perfect Cover BB Cream that I had been umming and ahhing over for months, so a comparison post is definitely on the cards.

This Chi Chi BB seems different from typical Western BB creams for a number of reasons:

1. It was researched and even made in South Korea, known as the home of the BB cream and where the 'phenomenon' was thought to have begun.
2. It touts a huge number of ingredients with skincare benefits, including caviar extract, Collguard (meant to prevent collagen breaking down), avocado oil, green tea extract, and vitamin E. It's also SPF 30.
3. Chi Chi mention the fact that BB creams are meant to be "make up meets skincare" on the packaging itself, the basis behind BB creams - something that other BB creams completely ignore.
4. It has the word "Super" in its name, and if that doesn't attract me I don't know what will.

I picked this up in the shade "light" because that's what I am in everything. It comes in four shades: light, medium, medium to tanned and tanned, and is sold at Myer and Target for $23 - a bit on the expensive side of drugstore, but both Myer and Target have great sales year round on their cosmetics.

The Packaging

This BB cream comes in a cute matte black squeeze tube with bold purple and white font:

One of my favourite things about this BB cream and another reason it stands out is the fact it ISN'T actually a squeeze tube at all - it has a pump! Yay!

The back of the tube tells you a bit more about the ingredients and the idea behind BB Cream.

The Product
In general, I find this BB cream worlds away from other drugstore BB creams. It is super moisturising, lightweight and leaves a dewy finish. I would call it a light to medium coverage foundation, although I don't find it as buildable as regular foundation.

I was disappointed when I first swatched it because it looked SO yellow in comparison to my other foundations.

Pinched off my instagram. Comparisons to Revlon Colourstay in Ivory, Rimmel Stay Matte Mousse in True Ivory, and W7 HD Foundation in Sand Beige.

However, when it is blended into the skin, the finish is surprisingly natural and seems to blend in seamlessly to the skin. I normally wear a mix of the Revlon and the W7 in the photo above, and the Chi Chi matched my skin perfectly.

The BB swatch blended in nicely to my hand, evening the skin tone and covering small blemishes:

The BB doesn't feel heavy, doesn't cake, and also smells really nice, but I can't quite put my finger on the scent. A good amount come out with a single pump, although I found myself needing a few pumps to cover my entire face.

Here's a before and after of the Chi Chi BB cream on my skin:

No BB cream.

1 layer of Chi Chi BB cream.

Noticed the overall even finish of the skin, reduction in redness and slight dewy looking glow. There is also no trace of the yellowiness apparent in the swatch. I absolutely love the finish of this BB cream - and that's saying something for someone who tends to prefer matte finishes.

Here's a full face before and after, to show you how the BB cream can be incorporated:

No makeup.

Full face: Slight contour and highlight, and I tried to avoid setting the BB with powder in order to retain the dewiness. Brows, eyes, lips have all been done.

The Conclusion
All in all, I'm very happy with this purchase. The BB cream is a great everyday foundation for when I don't want to use up my pricey Revlon or am looking for a more glowy look. It wouldn't be my first choice for a night out or a long day at work, but I've used it nearly every day since I've gotten it since it's just so easy to use and doesn't require work to look good. My go-to combo is Rimmel Fix and Perfect Primer, this BB and my Nars Radiant Creamy Concealer - it's heavenly.

Let me know if you've tried this out and what you think - I'd love to know.

Thanks for reading!

Review: Favourite Eye Brushes

I'll be the first to admit - I don't own a great deal of makeup brushes. They are absolutely gorgeous, and some make the whole process a lot easier, however I don't find myself using a whole lot of them. My collection pretty much consists of my Jessup brushes (already reviewed, here), my Real Techniques Your Eyes Enhanced Starter Set (I probably should review these), and bits and pieces I've ended up with over the years. Not a huge lot to choose from. However, there are some I reach for time and time again, because they just help me apply products so easily, and I've realised there are some I just can't live without. Eye brushes are especially important, because, seriously, try doing your eyebrows or eyeshadow without any brushes and see how you go (spoiler: it won't be amazing).

These are my top 6 picks:

• Real Techniques Your Eyes Enhanced Starter Set - Accent Brush
• Real Techniques Your Eyes Enhanced Starter Set - Base Shadow Brush
• Ecotools Angled Liner Brush
• Elf Eyeshadow "C" Brush
• Elf Contour Brush
• Jessup Precision Tapered Brush

Not the most attractive photo I've ever taken, but gets the job done. L to R: Accent Brush, Base Shadow Brush, Eyeshadow C Brush, Contour Brush, Precision Tapered Brush.

Y'all know I've gotta fit in some fancy photography somewhere!

Better get started then!

First, here's a close up comparison of all the brushes to see the difference in sizes:

Decided this picture needed to be X-LARGE.

As you can see, the C brush is the widest, the base shadow brush the longest, with the accent brush and angled liner brush similar in size, and the contour and tapered brush also fairly similar.

And here's my play by play for each brush individually:

Front on: it's tiny, quite square in shape, and the bristles are dense and not too bendy.

Side on: shows you how thin it is.

Real Techniques Accent Brush
As stated above, this brush (and the Base Shadow Brush) come in the "Your Eyes Enhanced" Starter Set. This is available from Priceline for $40 but PLEASE don't buy it from there. I know, I love Priceline but these are just SO grossly overpriced in Australia I can't stand it. If you're going to buy them, it is well worth picking them up from iHerb for $19AUD and pick the $8 shipping option and they'll be yours in a week! The shipping price evens out if you pick up some E.l.f. products as well (also grossly overpriced here).
In terms of the brush itself, I've never seen one this shape or size, and works really well for placing colour into my crease or outer V - my hooded lids make this difficult with anything larger. It is nice and firm, and picks up heaps of pigment. Love it.

Front on: wide, fluffy, looks more like a typical blending brush than a typical base shadow brush.

Side on: looks even more blendy, considering it's domed shape and fluffiness. Thinner than front on though - it's not round.

Real Techniques Base Shadow Brush
Real Techniques have this thing where none of their brushes look like the 'typical' shape one expects for a brush with that purpose (case in point: this blush brush - have you ever seen a blush brush like that before?), and the Base Shadow Brush is no exception. It is definitely more reminiscent of a blending brush than a base shadow brush to me. Luckily, it can be used as both, which is what I love so much about it.
It's not my favourite brush for base shadow (that comes later), but it does the job sufficiently. Where it really prevails, however, is in its ability to blend into the crease like a demon. Seriously! Because it is thinner side on, it fits into the crease perfectly, and its slight pointed tip and fluffiness just combine to be able to blend precisely. Other blending brushes (like the one in this same Starter Set) are just way too big for my crease and don't allow for any precision whatsoever.

Front on: nicely angled, quite short bristles that are nice and sturdy, and don't bend too much.

Side on: LOOK AT THAT PRECISION. HOW CAN ANYONE USE ANYTHING ELSE FOR THEIR BROWS.

Ecotools Angled Liner Brush
I'm pretty sure I've gone on and on about this brush on this blog and my Instagram that people are probably getting sick of me, so I'll keep this one short.
There is NO better brush for your brows, in my humble opinion. It is razor thin, yet sturdy and picks up product really, really well. Also super easy to wipe clean as there aren't a huge amount of bristles for the product to get all caught up in. I stumbled upon this early in my makeup-loving life (I feel like it's been a new life hahah) and have not felt the desire even once to use anything else for my brows.
I will note, however, I'm not a huge fan of using it for liner (its actual purpose) at all - for gel liner I use the brush that came with the Maybelline gel liner which I absolutely love.

Front on: wide and flat.

Side on: quite thin, very dense.

e.l.f. Eyeshadow "C" Brush
Another brush I got from iHerb (as well as the contour brush), and used in conjunction with the contour brush I found these the perfect set to begin using eyeshadow. This picks up pigment and packs it on really well for such a cheap brush ($3USD) and feels super soft. It's not the most precise brush - you can see in the above photo the curved top isn't quite even and there are a few hairs poking out here and there - but it works great for its intended purpose - a fairly generic, cheap eyeshadow brush. I also use it for placing colour into my crease due to its flat shape.

Front on: curved top, very round brush. Hairs are a bit all over the place, but for $3 you can't really complain.

Side on: I took this to show how useless a side on image would be. It is super round so looks exactly the same...

e.l.f. Contour Brush
I have no idea why this is called a contour brush. Maybe it was named before contouring became 'big' in the makeup world, and its original meaning was to contour the eyes, by placing colour in the crease? Who knows. But this is another cheapie brush that works really well for the price. It is like a normal-sized version of the oversized blending brush in the Real Techniques Starter Set, and I use it mostly to blend small areas, or place colour in the outer V of my eye. It is fairly dense and not hugely fluffy, however I find its denseness good for blending out small areas of eyeshadow (gotta be precise with hooded lids). I also haven't seen a similar shaped brush around, so I find it a good addition to any collection, however small or large.

Front on: pointy, dome shape, long bristles.

Side on: looks wider this way, but I've never noticed that in person. It's pretty round.

Jessup Precision Tapered Brush
This brush comes in the ten piece Jessup set found on eBay (check out the link to my original review above for details), and is the stand out of the 5 eye brushes included. It is quite big, but comes to a point, meaning eyeshadow can be placed quite specifically, or blended out. These brushes, in general, are insanely soft and I love them all, however this one is the one I reach for the most.


That's all for today! Let me know what you think, hope you've enjoyed reading.

Review and Swatches: My "My Lips But Better" Lipstick Collection

Today I was looking at my lipstick collection and I thought... goodness gracious I have so many MLBB colours. Whilst they range from pretty much pure nude to dark rosey brown, I thought surely I have to have some overlap in colours. For the purposes of finding out the answer and showing you guys some great MLBB colours, I decided to swatch them all and give you some mini reviews! I didn't do full reviews as a lot of these I've already reviewed on this blog, and I don't want to bore regular readers (if any of those exist!) by repeating myself.

I also took lip swatches and full face photos which can be seen here. I didn't want to put them in this post lest I make it the longest swatch post in Blogspot history.

My pretties all lined up. 

Let the reviews and swatches begin!

I reviewed Zurich and Cannes here when I got them, but I'll go through each one individually.

NYX Soft Matte Lip Cream - Zurich

Zurich is a pinky peach toned brown, making it a very universal MLBB colour for those with lightly pigmented lips. As with all three, the formula is very light weight and I love the matte finish, although unfortunately they dry out my lips quite a lot. I love that they are transfer proof as I can't stand having a huge coloured ring on my coffee cups (I drink a lot of coffee).

NYX Soft Matte Lip Cream - Cannes

Cannes is the darkest of the three. For some reason I always get Cannes and Zurich confused and think Zurich is the darkest but it's Cannes! Silly me. This is a darker, muted rosey colour which is quite similar to Sultry and Brown Sugar later on in the swatches. I feel as though it matures a look and I love it paired with big, bold lashes.

NYX Soft Matte Lip Cream - Stockholm

Stockholm was the first of these three I got, and is an orange-based nude. It's also the lightest of the three, and probably the most like my actual lips. The applicator on mine disintegrated which is a bit weird, but I emailed NYX and a new one is on its way! Love their customer service, and their online presence on Reddit is great.

Revlon Lip Butter - Peach Parfait

This COULD be amazing. It is so close. Unfortunately, Revlon decided it would be a great idea to pack huge chunks of glitter into it, which just makes it unnecessarily glittery and highly obvious they are not 'your lips but better'. It has a nice glossy finish and peachy tone, as well as a lightweight formula that feels like a lip balm, but the glitter chunks make it gritty on the lips and all round an uncomfortable formula. It's easy to throw on when you don't feel like wearing lipstick, but as a huge matte lip fan I don't reach for this often.

NYX Butter Lipstick - Pops

I also reviewed Pops here as I got it in the same haul as the Soft Matte Lip Creams. It is a true MLBB colour, and is a mid-tone rosey brown. The formula glides on easily, is moisturising and easy to wear. It doesn't have a lot of staying power, but with such an easy colour it doesn't have to. Love this lipstick.

Bourjois Rouge Edition Velvet - Nude-ist

These have a very weird smell which kind of put me off. It's almost metallic and one blogger even said they smell like blood. Which I'm so sorry for repeating to you but I cannot get it out of my head now. And it's such a shame because they feel SO light on the lips - lighter than the NYX lip creams - and feels like you're wearing nothing. The colour isn't very nude at all considering it's called Nude-ist, and in fact this is the most neutral, wearable colour you'll find in this collection - I was actually quite surprised at how similar and bright all the colours are. It kind of sucks because I'd probably pick up more, but this combined with the smell (and the steep $24 price tag) has made me not that keen to try any more.

Ulta3 Lipstick - Pure Petal

This is a new addition to my collection so I haven't fully made up my mind about this one. It's a weird orangey-brown colour that almost borders on copper, and I didn't anticipate how it would look on my lips. However, with a couple more wears it has grown on me, so I'm not sure whether I'll be keeping this one yet. For $3 though, I'm not hugely concerned. These lipsticks are moisturising, pigmented and easy to apply, and even smell great.

Rimmel London Lasting Finish by Kate Moss - 03

This is the most nude colour out of the bunch. I love the smell of this one, and the formula is creamy, quite thick and creamy on the lips. I'm not actually sure if this suits my cool-toned skin but I wear it when I want a nude lip anyway. This is probably very close to a MLBB for those with little colour in their natural lips.

Revlon Colourburst Matte Balm - Elusive

Elusive isn't much of a MLBB for me, but for some it might be. It's a surprisingly wearable pink, that has a uniqueness about it that I can't quite put my finger on. Revlon certainly has made some unique shades in their Balm lines. This is my favourite pink lipstick I own.

Revlon Just Bitten Kissable Balm Stain - Honey

A good choice for a MLBB colour. It is a hard to describe colour (again a unique one from Revlon), it has an almost purple tone that doesn't read directly onto the lips but instead makes it a really lovely colour. It leaves a pink stain, but nothing too dramatic. The formula of these balm stains is lovely and long-lasting, whilst feeling comfortable on the lips. The most annoying part of these Just Bitten Stains is the writing comes off the packaging so easily! I don't have that issue with the Matte or Lacquer Balms, and frustrates me quite a lot.

Face of Australia Glossy Lip Crayon - Sundae

A glossy, slightly pinky brown that feels very moisturising when first applied. Unfortunately, it has no staying power whatsoever which absolutely sucks. It also has a weird feeling when it kind of comes off and you only have a thin layer left and you try to reapply, it almost flakes off? I can't quite describe it. I'm not too disappointed because I got this in the Kmart sales for about $2 a while back.

Revlon Colourburst Matte Balm - Sultry

Not a MLBB for me, but a deep rosey colour that I absolutely adore and seemed to fit in with the colour scheme. It's much pinker than Brown Sugar, but otherwise they are quite similar. This has a much more matte finish though - Brown Sugar is semi-matte or satin (despite its name).

Ulta3 Matte Lipstick - Brown Sugar

I did a pretty lengthy review of Brown Sugar here but because it's my absolute favourite lipstick I don't mind repeating myself haha! It costs a measly $4 and is a great, dark rosey brown, with less pink in it than Sultry. It makes sense I love both as otherwise they are similar. I've actually nearly finished the tube! I am amazed with myself. Do yourself a favour and pick this one up.

That's all for this post. Remember to check out the full face swatches if you're interested, and let me know what you think with a comment! Thank you so much for reading.

My New Vanity and How I Store my Makeup

One thing I've wanted to do for ages was to set up a vanity/battlestation/dressing table in my room, to display my makeup and pretty much motivate me to use more of my products and keep everything in good condition. And I finally did it! Not sure why I left it so long, I think it was because I was looking for the perfect dressing table and eventually I kind of thought, I might as well just set one up with what I have - a plain old white desk.

I did a bit of looking around for things to decorate it with. I went to second hand stores and bargain stores, and the result was quite a success for a limited budget.

Ta da!

It's nothing special, but I thought I'd make a post about it in the hopes of inspiring at least one other person. It's amazing what you can achieve with little money!

The most expensive part (apart from the makeup obviously) is the desk or vanity. These range from super cheap second hand to super expensive brand new, and you can choose to move in whichever direction you like. Vinnies, Salvos, and Gumtree are good places to start, or even council clean up. Mine is my former study desk (lucky I have two), which we got years ago second hand from somewhere I don't remember. It's about as plain as you can get, with a shelf on the side and a slide out shelf underneath.

The stool, if you can call it that, is actually my clothes basket which I painted white to match my room a couple of years ago. It's the right height luckily, and also can get tucked away underneath the desk so it takes up less room. Score! You can find anything that you can sit on for this purpose, or if you're lucky your desk may even come with a chair or stool when you buy it.

This is everything I have out on my vanity:

This picture actually doesn't have my lamp on it either, simply because I forgot to put it on there for the photo.

I put the doily on there because I had it lying around and the top of the desk is in pretty bad shape. To be honest, it's probably not the most practical idea because the fabric I'm sure will get covered in makeup sooner than later.

I'll go through the shelving on the left first, because that was essentially my storage in the bottom of my wardrobe before I started using the desk.

The shelves are the Keji Four Drawer Desktop File from Officeworks. They're $17, with three small drawers and a larger one at the bottom. I love these drawers, they look sleek and uniform, and the clear plastic means that you can see what's in each drawer easily.

The only negative of these drawers is the top isn't actually flat, it has a plastic edge that runs through the middle and makes it so that you can't lie anything flat on there right across. However, I still have my plastic organiser on there, balancing fairly easily and still feels quite sturdy, so it definitely isn't a huge setback.

I didn't get a good photo of the top of the drawers unfortunately. On top, I have a plastic organiser that I bought from the bargain store Hot Dollar for about $12. I can't find a link to it online but I found them on eBay here (the bottom right choice). They're far cheaper online but I wasn't willing to wait the month or so to receive them. They have twelve lipstick slots on the right, two long, small brush or similar holders at the back on the left, and a shallow, wide compartment at the front.

I also have another lipstick holder with 9 slots behind it. Other than that, I have miscellaneous items I wanted in easy reach but not in plain sight, including my limited edition Chapstick tin, setting sprays, my Elf Daily Brush Cleaner, and makeup remover wipes.

The next photo shows a close up of the first plastic organiser. I keep some of my favourite lipsticks in the slots, my felt tip liquid liners, lash combs and my Nars Concealer in the long compartments at the back, and my Chi Chi BB Cream, Face of Australia Leopardess Palette and my Rimmel Stay Matte Powders in the shallow one at the front.

This also shows the things I keep in the top drawer of the Keji. It's where I put my mascaras, eyebrow products, eye primer, gel liners and all my eyeshadow singles, duos or quads I've accumulated over the years. Not the most fun drawer by far.

The second drawer is probably my favourite as it speaks to the crazy organiser inside of me. It contains all of my jumbo lip crayons, balms and glosses. Most of them are Revlon Colourburst or Just Bitten Kissable Balms as I have a love affair with them, with Face of Australia Glossy Lip Crayons, Apocalips, Velourlips and random glosses thrown in. I also keep my homemade lip scrub in here (in the Maybelline Dream Mousse container), and these strange Mirinesse cream eyeshadows which have insanely annoying packaging (that's the silver thing on the right).

Third drawer is blushes, bronzers, cream or powder foundations and my other liners that aren't felt tip. You can't tell from this angle but the Elf compacts at the front are actually stacked on top of other products as they are fairly thin. You can't stack up anything thicker than two of those compacts, for reference.

The big drawer at the bottom has palettes on the right hand side and tucked in at the back (these drawers go pretty far back). The rest of the drawer is primers, concealers and foundations. These can be stacked up a bit as well - you can see underneath the Colourstay at the front another bottle of foundation, if that helps you visualise it at all. Underneath the Lorac Unzipped is three Chi Chi eyeshadow palettes and an Elf palette if that helps either.

That's it for the drawers! For $17, they house quite a bit of makeup and pretty much fit in nearly everything I own, which is pretty great. If you live in Australia I highly recommend picking these up.

I also have these pots sitting on top of my desk. The one on the left has my Jessup brushes and the few other face brushes I owned (about three). The smaller one on the right has all my pencil products like eyeliners and lip liners. I got both from second hand stores - try looking where they keep all the pots for the pot plants and things like that. I think they were about $4 each. I also have a green one the same size as the one on the left which I'm hoping will fit in one of those square tissue boxes so I don't have to have an ugly box of tissues sitting on my vanity. Also, I thought I'd point out my brushes are sticking out awkwardly like that because I filled the bottom with CrazyBones (yeah, I know). I couldn't find anything better, but they definitely aren't going to stay like that for long.

I got these three matching glasses from a second hand store as well - they always have PILES of kitcheny things like plates, cups and mugs, so it's worth having a look. I like things that match so I went for the cups that they had three of. As you can see, two boringly house Q-tips and cotton buds, and the middle one is filled with little white stones I found at Hot Dollar as well ($2 for a really small bag, so I couldn't really afford to buy a heap of them), and my eye brushes. It's a good little set up I have, and was really cheap to do.

The mirror I have was another purchase from Top Dollar, but is a little short for my purposes (I have to look down into it to do my makeup, so often prop it up on top of the drawers so it's more my height). The fairy lights I've had for ages and got off eBay.

I also didn't get pictures of the rest of my set up, but if you look back to the original picture, I have a clock and my tissues on the small shelf on the right, and a small garbage bin at the bottom that I got from Officeworks - this one here. In the roll out drawer I have a small tray which has all of my Nyx Soft Matte Lip Creams and Chi Chi glosses, my Cleansing Milk which I use everyday and a small box at the back that has some lipsticks I rarely use.

And that's about all! If I add up all the money I spent, it totals about $60, which is for all the storage things except the desk itself and the random trays and things I had lying around, and doesn't include the desk or fairy lights which I already had. Pretty good!

I know this isn't the type of thing I normally post, but I thought it might be interesting for some people to see how they could store their makeup at a relatively cheap price (by all means you don't have to buy everything I have here! Select and purchase what you need), and hopefully a source of inspiration for some looking to create a cheap vanity!

As always, thank you so much for reading, I truly appreciate it. Hope you've enjoyed this post.

Review: My Eyebrow Products

Eyebrows are one of my favourite parts of a look. They can really change the whole impression of a makeup look, bringing something from soft to bold or from sleek and clean to messy and natural.

I've been on the hunt for my 'Holy Grail' brow product for a while now, and I can't quite say I'm there yet (still holding out for Anastasia DipBrow to be honest). However, there are a few products I have in my possession that have helped me along the way, all with their redeeming features and not-so-good qualities.

The brow products I'm reviewing today are:

• Australis Tint my Brow in Blonde
• NYX Eyebrow Cake Powder in Blonde
• Makeup Forever Aqua Brow in Light Blonde
• Savvy by DB Eyebrow Pencil in Blonde
• Essence Clear Lash and Brow Gel Mascara

Swatches!

I was trying to be clever.

Thick swatch on left, slightly more blended out on the right. I even put in a swatch of the clear gel. Not sure why.

Want to know my thoughts? Keep on reading!

Australis Tint my Brow in Blonde

I'll start this off by saying this is my current brow product. I used the NYX Cake Powder for ages (as you can tell by the usage), but I mostly just felt like a different sort of finish to my brows, where you could see the individual hairs more so than an all-over colour. This is where Tint my Brow comes in. I tried it a few times using the spoolie applicator to darken and thicken my brow hairs, but didn't love the effect or the crunchy feeling that occurred. Now, however, I use the top of the spoolie to deposit some of the gel onto my hand, then use my Ecotools Angled Liner Brush (pictured at the bottom of this review) to brush it through my eyebrows, like how you would with a regular brow gel (like Aqua Brow or Dip Brow). It works really well! I get less crunchiness and a much more natural result.

Tint my Brow in Blonde is cool toned, but not to the extent of Aqua Brow (note the swatch above). It has a hint of redness to it that is especially noticeable when blended. It can be found anywhere Australis is sold for $9.95. There are only three shades available - Blonde, Light Brown and Dark Brown. That, obviously, means this is the lightest shade, which is a bit of a shame considering it is still quite dark. I have light blonde hair and like dark brows, but other people who prefer lighter brows might struggle with this unless they have a very light hand.

The spoolie applicator on the product is a good idea (reminiscent of Benefit's Gimme Brow), but has one fatal flaw - it is way too big. Like, I honestly am not sure what they were thinking. It's near impossible to apply cleanly with such a large brush. Which is another reason why I use the above method. Alternatively, you could buy a smaller spoolie, or use an old clean mascara wand. Considering the cheap price of the product, it could be worth taking one of these routes.

The gel stays put well in the eyebrows, and was the swatch that 100% stayed when I tried to smudge them on my hand. However, keep in mind it is also the first to go when water touches them. Like, immediately. Therefore, this product would be good for someone wanting brows that stay in place for day to day activities (work, school, uni), but would not hold up in humid climates, for someone who does a lot of sport or sweats during the day, or an Olympic swimmer.


NYX Eyebrow Cake Powder in Blonde

As I said before, this, until recently, was my everyday brow product. It has a bit of a learning curve. When I first got it I just could NOT figure out the wax, and tried a whole bunch of application methods - wax before powder, wax after powder, putting wax all through my brows before powder, no wax at all, etc. However, I eventually realised that wax before powder is definitely the best option. I dip both sides of my Ecotools brush lightly into the wax and then into the powder.

The great thing about this product is that it is essentially a palette, including a spoolie and angled brush. Personally, I wouldn't use the angled brush unless I had nothing better, but the spoolie is a useful thing to have in there to brush the product through your brows to create a more natural look.

This NYX Eyebrow Cake Powder comes in six colours - Blonde, Brunette, Taupe, Dark Brown, and Black/Grey. However, only Blonde, Brunette and Dark Brown are available for purchase at Target in Australia. I forgive them for this, though, as the price point - $9.95 - is much cheaper than some of the other NYX products available in Australia.

The powder has two shades - a lighter and darker option. I use both in the Blonde one, but lean towards the lighter one since the dark one is really dark. For a 'Blonde' option, I feel as though the powders should be much lighter to differentiate them better from the darker options.

The product itself is very long-lasting, doesn't quite set in your brows but doesn't smudge easily. One downside is the amount of wax compared to the amount of powder - I have been very careful with the amount of wax I've been using since I hit pan, and it is still going to disappear much quicker than the powder, especially since there are 2 pans of powder.

Overall, it is a great product for those looking to take 'one step up' from their current single powder or pencil routine, but doesn't make your brows the best they can be. I'd say it is a perfect day-to-day choice for the majority, especially considering it last months.

Makeup Forever Aqua Brow in Light Blonde

MUFE can be hard to get your hands on in Australia (I know it's available online here but I've personally never used this website), so when I saw it for sale on Reddit I had to have it. I only use it for special occasions because it's fairly expensive (PM Studio sells it for $35), but the colour match is definitely the best out of all the products I own. It's the only one light and cool-toned enough to match my brows perfectly. It is also the most waterproof option, not setting as much as Tint my Brow but sticking around for much longer.

Aqua Brow is a thick gel that you squeeze out and apply with an angled brush. It creates a very natural looking brow, but can be hard to master if you aren't used to this application method. It is also worth noting that it's the only one of my products that requires a separate tool for application (technically, Tint my Brow doesn't, and NYX comes with one), which isn't an issue for me who uses one anyway but could affect a newbie or someone on a budget.

The packaging is surprisingly small - when I received it in the mail I couldn't believe how tiny it was! Many reviews say that it lasts forever but mine seems to disappear fairly quickly - maybe I just use more than most people, who knows.

This product is definitely best for those who want a waterproof brow product, and doesn't mind the hunt it may take to find it, nor the above-average price point.

Savvy by DB Eyebrow Pencil in Blonde

This brow pencil goes for a nice $4.99 at Priceline, and was my first foray into brow products. It is fairly warmed toned, however I will point out there is a taupe option in the pencils - not sure why I didn't get it. It is super cheap and great for beginners who don't want to have too bold a brow and just fill them in a bit. I used it for ages before creating a proper brow routine, and loved it, however compared to my other products I struggled even getting it to show up in the swatch (felt like I was scratching my skin to be perfectly honest). Not sure if the product has dried out or just my standards have risen. The lack of pigmentation can have its benefits, making it not so easy to overdo the brows. A big thing for me, and one of the main reasons I don't use pencils anymore, is that it doesn't colour the brow hairs, which annoys me as a lot of mine are blonde and even if you fill them in, you can still see the blonde hairs, giving a very strange-looking finish.

The low-down: cheap, lacks pigment, great for beginners. Try it out if everything else in this post scares you.

Essence Clear Lash and Brow Gel Mascara

This product doesn't quite fit in with the rest, as it's not a coloured product and I never use it independent of others. However, it is an important product in my collection, so here goes.

This Essence Gel is the cheapie in this post, going for even cheaper than the Savvy Pencil at only $3.50. It doesn't stay clear for very long, which sucks, but the ugly exterior is worth it for the wonderful product that is inside.

This gel keeps your brows in place and defines the hairs, which as I've mentioned above is a very important part of the 'look' for me. It makes your brows look wet initially but that effect goes away once you brush a spoolie through a couple of times. I often use it over one of the other products on here as a final little touch, but definitely isn't necessary.

The only issue is that it can dislodge the colour you've put in your brows if you brush it through too heavily, but this is mostly an issue with powders, not so much other gels. The product itself is also quite liquid, it's not much of a gel, which doesn't really matter but I thought I'd point it out anyway.

You can supposedly use it on your lashes as well but I never understood the purpose of clear mascara - maybe because I have blonde lashes so it would literally do absolutely nothing to them.

For $3.50, this Gel Mascara is a good option to try out for your brows if you feel as though the hairs don't stay in place, or if they are already nice and thick and you just want to groom them a bit.


Extra little tidbit, this is the brush I currently use for my eyebrows, and is the only one I'll ever want to use:

Ecotools Angled Liner Brush

As close up as my phone would allow.

 It's $7.99 from Priceline (you can find it even cheaper on iHerb), and 100% worth it. It is so much thinner than any other brow brush I've ever tried, and I honestly don't know how you could use anything else. Compared to, say, the Angled brush from the Real Techniques Eyes Enhanced Kit, there's simply no competition. It's fine enough to make your brows sharp and defined, without looking drawn on. It's perfect (and I don't say that often!)


That's it for another review. Let me know if you want me to stick to some sort of schedule with my blog posts, I mostly just write whenever I feel like it at the moment, but I understand if that can be confusing to keep up.

Thanks for reading and hope I've helped!