IOPE Air Cushion® XP Natural

I've bought into the fad I'm slightly embarrassed to admit. After a night of discussion with my girl friends and some reading on the internet, I went to Strawberrynet and got me some IOPE Air Cushion® XP Natural, Colour N21. There are 3 different ranges of Air Cushion, Natural, Shimmer and Cover. For Natural there are 2 shades N21 and N23. For Cover there are 2 shades C21 and C23. Shimmer however only has 1 shade S22. 

The main difference between Natural and Cover is the amount of coverage it provides. The Natural range provides light coverage, good for evening out uneven skin tones or slight pigmentation and the Cover range provides more coverage. Shimmer gives a luminous end result. What I do like about the IOPE Air Cushion® XP is that the coverage is build-able. I got N21 which is the fairest colour of them all and doesn't really look like you're wearing make up. However for areas where I have a pimple or some red marks, I find that I can apply 2 or 3 layers and it will cover that blotchy spot up quite well. 

All IOPE Air Cushion® XP has SPF50+ and PA+++ which is pretty high protection for normal day wear, unless you're going outdoors for extended periods of time, you might want to apply sunblock before applying Air Cushion just for that bit more added protection. I'm in the office all day except for lunch time so I don't use any additional sunscreen under. 

The IOPE Air Cushion® XP is very moisturising and I have combination skin. So I've found myself asking people over the course of the day - does my skin look dewy or oily? Just to get an idea of how it actually looks. For the first few hours of the day it looks ok (without any outdoor activity and only sitting in the aircon) but later it does look oily. My skin might be too oily to use this on its own, I might have to use powder on top of it to prevent it looking too greasy. In which case I could use it like a foundation and finish off with powder. That would bring the coverage factor up one notch.

IOPE Air Cushion® XP has quite a strong perfume smell when you first apply but it wears off quite quickly so I wouldn't worry about the smell. The puff is a rubbery sort of texture which means none of the product gets absorbed into the sponge which is good, and it transfers to the skin nicely. I do wish the weather here was less humid then I could use this product on its own coz I really do like how it looks. It feels a bit sticky so I try not to touch my face too much which is probably a good idea. 

 

I think I will repurchase this once I'm done despite the oily look. I think I can sort that out quite simply... either with a dusting of powder or something. I do like it quite a bit especially the light weight feel. The IOPE Air Cushion® XP pack I bought was one in the compact with one refill for SGD$60 on Strawberrynet. It arrived within a week, pretty good!

Benefit Oxygen Wow

The first thing I said when I used Oxygen Wow! for the first time was... WOW! I had purchased Petal, the same shade as the Hello Flawless! powder that I use. I bought this online and didn't even go to the shop to test the colour. If that's not brave, I don't know what is.

I used Stay Flawless before applying Oxygen Wow! since that's what everyone was recommending. (If you have read my previous posts about Stay Flawless, you would have seen how my entire face began to shrivel up and crack when I used Stay Flawless with PlaySticks. It was horrors! Thank goodness it didn't happen with Oxygen Wow) This liquid foundation went on really easily. One pump was sufficient. It blended and spread well. The coverage level is very high. I think this possibly provides better coverage than PlaySticks. Oxygen Wow! is also very lightweight and doesn't make you feel like you have a layer of make up on, which I think is pretty good considering it's got good coverage. 

PlaySticks is of a cream consistency which I felt was too oily for my combination skin and for this humid weather. Oxygen Wow! is liquid and for that reason I think managed to even my face out much better. Oxygen Wow! is also Oil-Free which is ideal for oily or combination skin. It doubles up as sunscreen, broad spectrum SPF 25. Not enough sunscreen for extended periods outdoors in my opinion but for going to the office, I think that's ok. 

This power combination of Stay Flawless + Oxygen Wow! + Hello Flawless! lasted me from 8am to 11pm. Throughout the day I only touched up once, at 6pm I blotted my face and brushed on a light layer of Hello Flawless! to look a bit fresher before going out for dinner. 

Oxygen Wow! is a foundation that I would highly recommend. It's got good coverage, matches my sallow skin tone well, lasting power, non oily, sunscreen... not sure what else you could ask for. I got it from Benefit online for US$36. Considering exchange rates aren't so great for me at the moment, I still think it is worth it. Go check it out!

For some reviews about the other products which I am talking about... You can read my previous posts about PlaySticks, PlaySticks Verdict, Hello Flawless! and Stay Flawless

Benefit Stay Flawless 15-Hour Primer

So you probably know by now that I'm a big fan of Benefit Cosmetics. I find their make up to be good to my skin and colours suitable for my skin tone. During my last big buy, I decided to try Stay Flawless 15-Hour Primer. Primers are especially important in hot and humid climates like Singapore. From the moment you leave the comfort of your air conditioned room, you feel your whole face melting off. Literally. Followed by consistent blotting and soon enough, you have almost no make up left and it's not even noon yet. 

Stay Flawless comes in a stick which I find particularly useful when I have to travel. It glides on your skin really easily and is almost colourless. What I particularly like is the slightly cool sensation you get when you put it on. I'm not sure why that happens, but it feels soothing. It feels slightly tacky on your skin but that's to make your make up stick to your face for 15 hours right?

The first time I used it, I was extremely shocked! I had used it and then applied Play Sticks, the followed by Hello Flawless! powder. Almost immediately, my skin started to crease and crack. Play Sticks has a very creamy consistency, like a soft crayon. I could feel my face tightening and I when I looked in the mirror, I saw my face cracking up. It looked like dried up clay mask... I quickly washed everything off my face and heaved a sigh of relief.

The next time I used it, I got a slightly better results. I used Stay Flawless then I used You Rebel Lite. Being a tinted moisturiser with a more liquid consistency, it didn't cause that dryness that I had when I paired Stay Flawless with Play Sticks. So a word of caution... make sure you use a liquid foundation when you use Stay Flawless.

When my next shipment come, I will try it with Hello Flawless Oxygen Wow! This is a liquid foundation and the reviews that say that Stay Flawless is good, they all use it with Hello Flawless Oxygen Wow! So till next time... Let's see if this US$32 that I spent on Stay Flawless was worth it in the end.

You read about my reviews about Play Sticks, Play Sticks Verdict, Hello Flawless! and You Rebel Lite

Benefit Play Sticks - The Verdict

I've been using Play Sticks on a daily basis and am ready to commit to comment now. I think it's a great product that provides good coverage for scars, open pores, pigmentation. It goes on well and is easy to use. Once you use powder on top of it, your skin does look quite flawless.

I however, will not be buying it again once this stick is done. Reason being that the weather here is too humid and lately it's been so hot like 35ºC with a humidity of more than 90%, so my skin gets really oily a couple of hours later. I must admit that I do have skin that's a bit on the oily side, but I have noticed that it's significantly oilier when I use Play Sticks. I think it's too creamy for oilier skin types.

If you live in dry climates and/or have dry skin, I think Play Sticks will be great for your skin as it will provide sufficient moisture and won't have your skin feeling dry and flaky.

To read my previous post about Play Sticks - go HERE

Benefit Play Sticks

I did a big shop at Benefit Cosmetics recently and bought some interesting stuff. In the past I didn't use foundation, instead I used You Rebel Lite which is a tinted moisturizer that provides light coverage and doesn't feel like you're wearing a thick layer of makeup. This time I thought I'd try something with a bit more coverage for a few reasons. I was hoping that it will be able to disguise my big pores and make my skin look a little better.

Play Sticks

I have been using it daily, after moisturizer but before Hello Flawless! Play Sticks does provide slightly better coverage being that it's a creamy consistency so it can fill in any holes and reasonably cover any red pimples. I do feel that my skin is a little oilier these days and I am not sure if it's because of the Play Sticks or just our bad weather. 

Play Sticks comes in only 3 colours, so if it doesn't suit you, then you might prefer to go for Hello Flawless Oxygen Wow! which comes in more colours (matchy matchy with the Hello Flawless! powders). The next round I will buy Hello Flawless Oxygen Wow! to try, I hear good things about it. I use light beige with Hello Flawless! in petal. 

The three colours are playfully named, as with all their stuff:

• Spin the bottle (light beige)
• Tea party (medium beige)
• Jump rope (medium tan)

Because it comes in a stick, it makes application extremely easy which is a real plus for me. The consistency of the foundation is also a winner coz it's smooth. However, I'm still entirely sold on this product. There's something about the way the powder goes on that I don't really like. It seems to be a bit... coagulated. I'm not sure why, but it doesn't feel like it sits well into my skin. Only after some light perspiration then it settles. Perhaps my moisturizer is too light.

For now if you're interested, I'd suggest you go to the Benefit Boutique to test it out before buying, to see if you like it and also for the colour. It cost me US$36 and I'm 50/50 on this one. I might post a conclusion later on how I feel about this product.

For the verdict - go HERE

Benefit You Rebel Lite

My makeup parcel has arrived... yipee! One of the products that I had purchased from Benefit was You Rebel Lite.  It's a tinted moisturizer with SPF 15, Aloe, Vitamins A and E.  I had previously purchased You Rebel once and couldn't use it coz I found the colour too dark for my skin tone. 

 

SPF (Sun Protection Factor) rating is a measure of the fraction of sunburn producing UV rays blocked, in this product there's SPF 15.  Aloe is good for soothing and moisturising the skin, Vitamin A is known for anti-aging properties and Vitamin E will help the skin fight free radicals.

Today I got to use it and I am very happy with it.  I applied moisturizer before applying You Rebel Lite, for the sole purpose to ensuring my skin is well moisturized and hydrated.  A big mistake when applying makeup, so I have learned through the years of bad makeup, is that less is more.  I very carefully squeezed about 0.5cm of You Rebel Lite onto my finger and dabbed it all over my face, blending after.  I'm super lazy so I just used my fingers throughout.  I'm sure it'll probably go on more evenly with a foundation brush, or so they say.

The very first thing I did notice was how well the colour suited my skin.  It was like it wasn't there!  The coverage for blemishes and scars was moderate.  I don't expect it to be able to erase my scars 100%, but I think it did a pretty good job.  The consistency is thick-ish, maybe slightly thicker than toothpaste.  So it's still easily spreadable and at the same time, providing pretty decent coverage.  After that I applied a light layer of Hello Flawless! in Petal (Never Settle) and I'm out the door, this is at 8am.

The next thing I noticed at 4pm today was that my skin felt considerably less oily.  I have quite oily skin, depending on the weather, time of month, etc.  But as compared to yesterday where I only applied moisturizer and Hello Flawless!, my skin is not greasy.  It does not make any sense to me -  putting on more moisturiser to make your skin drier.  It is however fact, that your skin is oily because it's trying to compensate for the lack thereof.  Technically speaking, your skin is oily because it's actually dry.  Weird but true.  So those of you who have oily skin, remember to moisturise!

This can be used in place of a foundation if you want something that's really light weight.  My conclusion is that You Rebel Lite is a fantastic buy, for only US$25 direct from Benefit's website!

If you'd like to read my review on Hello Flawless, click here!

Benefit Hello Flawless!

Hello Flawless! by Benefit is a powder foundation with SPF15 that glides on silky and sheer and lasts all day.  The coverage can be customised depending on how and how much you choose to apply.  It comes with a sponge and a brush that keeps neatly under the powder.  If you want sheer light coverage or for touch ups later in the day, I'd recommend using the brush.  This creates a matte "no make up" kind of look.  If you want more coverage (generally for going out at night), then I'd recommend using the sponge.  Applying the powder with the sponge can cover up small imperfections on the skin and create a flawless look.  For daily use I'd say it lasts me for at least 2 months.  I personally don't have very good complexion so I use the sponge... That helps cover up big pores quite well.

It comes in a range of 9 shades so you would definitely be able to find a shade that is perfect for your skin tone.  The 9 shades from lightest to deepest shade:

• "I love me!" Ivory
• "Never Settle" Petal
• "Me, vain?" Champagne
• "I'm cute as a bunny" Honey
• "All the world's my stage" Beige
• "What I crave" Toasted Beige
• "I'm haute for sure" Amber
• "Why walk when you can strut?" Hazelnut
• "Too fierce to beg" Nutmeg

I have a very sallow yellow tone to my skin which makes it really difficult to buy face powder.  I've tried many other brands but so long as they have an underlying orange or pink tone to it, my face turns too orange or too pink and I look super weird.  "Never Settle" Petal is the best for me.  It doesn't make my face look pasty white, nor does it make it look too pink or orange.  This shade works for me is I suspect is because the undertones are yellow.  Not to mention, Hello Flawless! does not irritate my sensitive skin nor cause me any unsightly allergies.

Benefit's website also has a Shadefinder page to help you choose the most ideal shade.  What I like best is that their shades caters to Asians and Africans, not only Caucasians.  I'd imagine a Caucasian with olive skin would experience the same troubles finding the right shade of powder, they would probably find something at Benefit.  You can also go to their stores and ask them for help in choosing a shade if this is your first time buying from Benefit.  I however, being the queen of lazy and online shopping did not go to the stores.  When I started buying Benefit makeup, they didn't have any stores that sold it here so it's not like there was a choice.  Hello Flawless! goes for US$34 online, in Singapore stores I think they go for S$54.  Buying online is a good option when they have free worldwide shipping for purchases above US$125.