Catrice's Victorian Poetry Eyeshadow Palette in C01 NostalCHIC

Early in June, I was just chilling at a mall when I came across Catrice's Victorian Poetry collection. I actually didn't think much of the brand before this because I cannot work with the formula of the brand's nail polishes. I know they are two completely different categories but you know, it was just a bad impression. But this collection was so pretty with its frosty-ice-queen theme that I decided to swatch and developed a crush. ꈍ .̮ ꈍ

The eyeshadows are not buttery smooth like Urban Decay's (Well, this is a hell lot more affordable and a whole lot less guilt-inducing. Heh.) but they are of decent pigmentation and actually blend very well. I don't wear my eyeshadows with a primer and my eyelids can get pretty oily but this lasted okay for a dinner and an ice-cream. Some fading away, but still looking pretty fresh. :D

I will definitely by swatching a lot more when I pop by Guardian! ♡

My Little Beauty Secret: Naruko's Face Renewal Miracle Essence

Naruko has been my favourite-st brand in the last 2 years because of this, the one and only Face Renewal Miracle Essence. I found this elixir during one of my 'darkest skin periods' via Fiddy Snails's blog (Ilu.♡). Back then, my skin was incredibly sensitive and irritated because of a snowball effect of natural sensitivity made worse by laser and dry Korean weather. But a few pats of this (Okay, I did spam when I realised how precious this was to my skin.) gradually nursed my skin back to health and beyond. ♡_♡

Naruko Face Renewal Miracle Essence is under the premium Jing Cheng line. Made from botanical extracts, yeast extract and a high concentration of Ystract, it promises a clear, hydrated and youthful complexion.

Here are the main ingredients:

• Actuat E60: This special Naruko concoction is made from the extracts of 60 specially-selected plants. It works by combining Eastern herbal extracts and Western herbal aromatherapy to create a soothing environment for stressed-out skin, so that it is in its optimal condition to absorb the goodness of this essence.
• Ystract: Another brainchild of Naruko, this contains amino acids, vitamins and minerals to help block melanin production, reduce spots and encourage skin metabolism. It also hydrates, whitens and firms up skin.
• Yeast Extract: This delivers moisture to the skin, while repairing and enhancing the skin's natural defence system with its active ingredients. It also helps to control sebum production and whiten complexion.

I religiously apply this twice a day, after cleansing. And at the start, I really didn't think much of it. I just didn't want to waste (any more) money and the initial effects were pretty much non-existent. But this is a treatment and as the days of application went by, I realised that my skin was getting more hydrated, plumper and a lot less irritated. Even my inner cheeks, which always had some degree of roughness to them, were visibly smoother and happier. And it got to the point when my facial therapist was like 'Hey, your skin's getting a lot better! In fact, it's actually pretty good.'.

No one has ever said that about my skin. Ever.

And to think it was said by my facial therapist who sees my face up-close every month.. I will marry this. Unfortunately, Naruko decided to end its Singapore distribution this year. ಥ_ಥ So the only way for me to get my supply is when my cousin flies over to Taiwan.. Or perhaps, it's time for me to go back there again? :D Heh.

Dressing My Nails in Catrice's Irregular Galaxies

Was a little early for my facial the other day and so, I decided to pop by Guardian and found Catrice Spectra Light Effect Nail Lacquer in 03 Irregular Galaxies. I love blue on my nails (Prolly because of Lindsay Lohan in 'Parent Trap'. Heh.), even though it does kind of make your nails a tad yellow when you remove it but I'll worry about that later.

Catrice is a super affordable brand that is stocked exclusively at Guardian. Their collections come out pretty often. The previous collection was Victorian Poetry and I got an eyeshadow palette (Oops! Swatches are still sitting in my draft and I forgot to include it in my Minimalism Project", which is actually failing miserably. ಥ_ಥ) because the quality was so decent. It isn't buttery soft like Urban Decay but it blended well and the colours were so frosty pretty! But that's another story for another entry, so back to this.

This actually isn't the first time I tried Catrice's nail polishes. A couple years back, I got the base coat, top coat and some shimmery nail polishes but I tried them once and never used them again. The formula wasn't very smooth so it made application a challenge for me. And unfortunately, that hasn't changed. I had to do this twice before I was okay with how my nails look under different light angles (No bumps, absolute smoothness.. Okay, not absolute.). Two coats were needed and I used my favourite Innisfree base and top coats.

Was it worth the effort?

Hell yeah! Look at how pretty the colours are! (': It makes marking scripts so much more bearable! (':