ZOEY'S

Brows on fleek (Budget-friendly!)

Hi peeps! (Comment a 🐳 if you're from snapchat though it may be ages ago since I mentioned about this post oops) For awhile I've been asked a great deal of questions every time about how I draw my brows, how long it takes & what products I use etc so I thought why not blog about it so I can further explain more here. Just a disclaimer before I start, everyone have DIFFERENT eyebrow shapes, amount of eyebrow hair, preferences and what not so this is not something you MUST do, it's just what I personally prefer to do.

On the other hand, brows are NOT TWINS but more like sisters or bff. They do not have to look identical or be symmetrical but they mustn't look like distant relatives though. Not going to insert any fail photos of anyone's brow or lord knows I'll be taken for ~~bashing~~, oh internet.One thing to know is that learning how to draw and perfect your brows to your liking WILL take time and I know this because I've been learning to shape and draw my eyebrows for around 3 years and I wouldn't say they're perfect but it gets better every time though at times you might end up doing a boo boo with them but fret not, makeup wipes off but experiences doesn't so keep practicing and experimenting with different eyebrow shapes and colors till you find the one that suits you the most (use concealer to cover unwanted brow hair areas when you're experimenting, do not ever shave or pluck them unless you're very certain of the shape & style you want)

Found an eyebrow styles chart from google so you guys can get more options on which to experiment with
cr: Google Image

So, regardless all the money and effort you'll have to spend on them brows, it's going to make every penny worth in the end,when you finally get the hang of it of course. For those who are worried that you'll have to buy products that costs an arm and leg then end up putting all these money to a lost cause when you find out that it doesn't suits you etc, I got you covered. All of the products I'll be talking about are on the budget and quite easy to get your hands on them.

Let's start!

The layout of brow products in accordance of appliance. Looks a lot but I'll let you know which ones you can omit very soon.

FIRST STEP
What to do: Outline your brows according to your natural brow shape or according to the style you want. Be more light handed towards the head of your brows and exert more pressure towards the tail of your brows then fill in 3/4 of your brows (refer second illustration). Afterwards, blend out any harsh lines using spoolie brush.

Product used: Innisfree Auto Eyebrow Pencil in the shade Urban Brown ,RM15.

I outline my brows according to the red dots, not in a dotted pattern of course. Don't go so heavy-handed on the head part.

I fill in only the part where its light red using brow pencil to let the brow itself look more natural tan straight up drawn/filled in then I blend upwards using the spoolie brush.

STEP TWO
What to do: This step is optional but I tend to fill in the the arch and tail of my brows with an angled brush and brow powder because I am lacking in the brows department so pencil alone doesn't feel enough for me plus brow powder holds on the the brow hair better when there's a base to it.

Product used:A super cheap angled brush from supersave I bought from many many years ago, it's less than RM5 no joke.

Light red section is also where I fill in with brow powder.

If you have more hair on the head of your brow(purple/pink section) then you can omit this step but if you have more of a sparse area on the head of your brow, use whatever that is left on your brow brush/spoolie to fill in the sparse area.

What to do: Used this for at least a year and a half and I still have quite a bit of it. Obviously you can tell which one is my fav shade right? Do note that I tend to advise people to match their brows color with their hair color unless you have rainbow hair color then just go with how you feel like it. What I always do is just dip the brush into the middle shade and lightly tap off any excess product then fill in any sparse areas on the arch and tail of my brows. If you feel like you applied too much just go back to blending with your spoolie brush. You can stop here if you like how it looks but I'll usually proceed to the next step.

Product used: OBUSE eyebrow palette, RM8.

STEP THREE
What to do: Personally, this step is a game changer to my usual brow regime and this step is a must for a lot of beauty gurus and youtubers even MUAs. Just dab a dime size amount or as much as you need on the back of your hand and use a soft angled brush to clean up the edges. If you accidentally concealed some part of your brows that you didn't intend to conceal just go back with your brow pencil or in my case, brow powder to fill in the concealed areas.

Product used: NYX HD Photogenic Concealer in the shade CW04,use a concealer to define your brow shape and clean up any unwanted mess around your brows.

What to do: (mentioned above)

Product used: FakeFace small angled brush,got it from supersave as well but damn the quality is super good for a brush less than 5 bucks.

Colored area is where I apply my concealer, don't need too much tho, just enough to clean up any harsh lines or mess made.

LAST STEP

What to do: Set your masterpiece with a brow gel / browcara so they stay in place and last longer! Use a waterproof one if you're going to engage in any activities that will make you sweat or wet.

Product used: gimmeBROW brow gel from benefit, price N/A.

That is basically the products involved in my current brow regime, hope it somehow helped you and do let me know if you have any personal fave/recommended products you would like to share or suggest for me to review on next.

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APRIL SKIN MAGIC SNOW CUSHION BLACK REVIEW

april skin 6:50 PM

Hi guys! Back with another review of a product that was or is still highly coveted over the internet by beauty gurus, youtubers and the list goes on and the product is the April Skin Magic Snow Cushion (Black).

Before I dive right into the product review, I shall shed some light on April Skin, the brand itself through some photos I found on their websites.

(I know my review is probably a day late & a dollar short but better late then never right? *cough* excuse *cough*)

Below are product's claims

(Photo credits to April Skin Website)

The product itself claims to be moisturising while providing high coverage as well as having this technology I have yet to heard which is a double cushion technique where two cushions are overlapped but I won't go into details about it since I don't know too much about cushion techniques.

There's two version of the cushion which are Black and White. So to provide a guideline prior to purchasing the cushion, I found a very helpful image from google, yes, google.

I bought the black one since I have combination oily skin plus I needed something with higher coverage as my makeup base.

I purchased mine at 11street when it was on a discount & it was such a bargain (I think) for RM54.50 including postage to east malaysia. Eep eep!

Do check for the 正品 (which means authentic product) hologram sticker on the box if you happen to purchase any because there is a plethora of imitation and fake goods on the net so do be very cautious to avoid fake products for the sake of your precious skin & money.

APRIL SKIN MAGIC CUSHION BLACK #23 NATURAL BEIGE

(Apologies for these poorly edited photos)

Here comes the review part:

Packaging:

9/10

Personally, I'm quite fond of the monochrome/minimalist packaging. The cushion case itself also felt sturdy to touch and unlike some other cushions I have, the contents won't stain the casing (in case you got clumsy & get foundation on the casing) and I can wipe it off with ease. I'm not too sure though on how the double cushion technique goes.

Another thing that I believe most people do care when it comes to packaging is safety seal and what not. Fret not, the cushion does comes with a safety seal above the cushion & another sealing the mirror.

Coverage

9.0/10

As for me, the coverage is medium to full. Just start with one layer and build as you go if you need any extra coverage. On lazy days I'll just skip concealer and this alone will suffice to cover up my dark circles and some pigmentation.

Tip: bring the product down to your neck to look more natural and even.

Lasting Power

6.5/10

As much as the coverage goes,you will need to do touch ups throughout the day. Another method you can do to touch up is with a tinted compact face powder with a brush.

Price

Depending on where you get the product, the price varies. Most of the sellers/website I saw retails it around RM99 or so. I did however bought it on a bargain of RM54.50 off 11street but I believe the seller did increased the price to RM70++. Just do more research before you buy one & make sure you're getting the authentic one!

Texture

6/10

Previously I rated the texture a 2 but a little note is that the texture itself is alright and it stays put on your skin after application but when setting powder etc are applied, it tends to shift slightly throughout the day especially when your face starts to get oily so best to apply primer before you pat on you cushion foundation.

Drying/Moisturising

Non drying and somewhat moisturizing I guess?

Add-on

The puff that comes with the product does feel of a higher quality and it distributes the product nicely. Easy to clean and doesn't take too long to dry.

Overall

7/10

I personally think that this product is totally overrated considering the quality it provides doesn't totally live up to the hype in the end but each to their own. Would I recommend? Maybe.

p/s: I initially wanted to insert some boomerang clips for more insights onto the product but every time I insert one, a Pinterest hover button pops up whenever I attempt to press play and the clip just fails to play and opens in a new tab as a photo. HELP!

Before I go, one question, would you prefer to see swatches photos in future reviews?

LEAVE A COMMENT BELOW

Thank you for your time.

**EDIT**

10/14/2016

Been going back to using the cushion again after a while and realized that it transfer mostly when it's set with powder on top and when your face starts secreting oil. I set all of my foundations with powder plus during the days when my dark circles are AWFUL, the cushion alone won't be sufficient so I tend to go with concealer and setting it with powder etc.