An Engineer's Beauty Diary

Happy Sunday everyone! I hope you're all doing well. Summer has set in long ago here and it's sweltering Every. Single. Day. So, I thought now would be a great time to review the new Chanel Les Beiges Water Fresh Tint! Price/Availability : I purchased this on Macys.com because I had a cash back offer of 16% form RetailMeNot.com. This is a very pricey item, coming in at $65 for 1 oz / 30 mL of product. It does come with its own brush, which I believe attributes to the pricing. This can also be purchase on a number of sites, such as Chanel.com, Neiman Marcus, Saks, and Bloomingdales, just to name a few places that I saw this offered. Packaging : This tint comes in a beautiful, tall, clear plastic bottle with a pump. It looks so elegant sitting on the table. I like the clear packaging, so you can see when you're nearing the end. As I mentioned above, every time you buy this product, the brush is included, and I wish there was a way to have the brush be optional be...

Hello and welcome back! As promised, I'm daily blogging, so today, I've got another review for you, this time on the Volition Beauty Prismatic Luminizing Shield SPF 50. Without further ado, let's jump into the details! Q: Where can I buy it? A: Sephora stores, Sephora.com, volitionbeauty.com Q: How much does it cost? A: $35 USD Q: Will it suit my skin? A: If you have oily/combo, acne prone, sensitive skin and you find that all the sunscreens you've tried in the past have irritated your skin or broken you out, then this is definitely a game changer for you! Q: Is the scent going to give me a headache? A: It shouldn't. It has a very slight sunscreen/powdery, fresh scent upon application, but it doesn't linger and dissipates quickly. Q: How do I use it? A: Shake it slightly, and then squeeze out about a quarter sized amount onto your fingers and spread evenly along your face and neck. Q: When do I use it? A: As the last...

Hi everyone! I would like to begin this post by apologizing for my long time away from blogging. I'm not going to bore you all with the details, so today, I thought I would kick off my return to blogging with a review on the Laura Mercier Translucent Loose Setting Powder! You can find the small size of this powder, which is the one I have, at the Sephora check-out line for $23. This small travel size has 9.3g, or 0.33 oz of product and comes with the signature Laura Mercier velour puff. As I'm sure that the both the full and travel sizes contain the same product, I'm going to jump straight into the review. This broke me out. Badly. I don't know what it is that caused me to break out from this, but anytime that I wore it, it caused me to get quite a few under the skin bumps that eventually cleared away when I stopped using this powder. I was hoping that this powder would control my insanely oily skin, but it didn't hold up that much longer than my drugs...

Hey everyone; I hope you're all doing well! Today I'm bringing to you all a review on the NYX Baked Blush in the shade Chiffon. There are 12 shades that retail for $6.99 at Ulta and Ulta.com. Without further ado, let's get straight into the review! Chiffon is a gorgeous light to medium tone bronzy, peachy, pinky, shimmery shade that works wonderfully for the summer time. It's not so shimmery that it looks obnoxious; it has fine shimmers in it that make the skin look like it's glowing. The blush has a nice pigment to it, but not so much that you have to be careful with how much to apply. This has definitely become my go-to blush for everyday. Ulta has 40% off right now on NYX products, so if you'd like to try out this color or some other colors, these blushes are around $4 for now!  If you're afraid of how shimmery this is, don't be! It may not look like much as a swatch, but on the cheeks, it translates amazingly and doesn't have ...

Hello all! I'm here today with the promised review on the best mascara that I've ever tried. That mascara would have to be the MAC Opulash. Let's get into the review! This is by far my favorite style of brush because it grips every lash and coats them to perfection. This particular tube of mascara is kind of old and dried up, but I don't use it anymore as of right now. I haven't had the chance to go and purchase a new one, but the Maybelline Colossal Volum' mascara that I just did a review on is perfect and easily accessible right now. The formula is a bit on the drier side, but it isn't so dry that it's flaky; this is truly the most perfect formula I've ever come across. This mascara volumizes and lengthens to the extreme! When I wear this, my lashes almost hit my eyebrows, which is crazy awesome. It never clumps and you don't have to worry about getting the waterproof version because the regular version can last through sweat, oil and te...

Hey everyone! Here is the update that I promised on the new Maybelline the Colossal Volum' Express Mascara. I've been using this mascara for only a few days, but it's an amazing mascara! As you can tell from the picture above, the brush is quite large. There are a good number of bristles and it's a standard brush in the sense that it's not made of plastic. The big brush can cause issues if you have a smaller eye space or if you want to apply this on your lower lashes. I haven't had any issues with smearing, smudging or flaking, which I consider a win because it's been almost 100 degrees here. It's amazing for length and volume; it pushes my lashes up and holds them there without drooping. The formula is slightly more wet than some other mascaras, but not so wet tht your lashes will stick and clump together. There is a faint rose scent that apparently all Maybelline mascaras have. I may do a comparison of this mascara and the Falsies Flared, which ...

Hello everyone; I hope you're all doing well! A few days ago, I decided to try out a new mascara, just because I was tired of the Maybelline Falsies Flared. I went to Ulta with the hopes of trying out and loving the L'Oreal Voluminous Carbon Black Mascara. I bought the waterproof version because some reviews said that it could smudge or flake easily. Well, they were right. Even with the waterproof version, it smudged on me like no tomorrow. It was great in volumizing and lengthening, but it just smudged too easily. I would have raccoon eyes within 30 minutes of applying it, and that's staying inside in an air conditioned and cool environment. I loved the definition it gave my lashes and it was probably the closest dupe to the Tarte Lights, Camera, Lashes. The Tarte mascara had issues with smudging on me as well. I just picked up the Maybelline Colossal Volume, so I'll probably put up a review of that within the week. Thank you all so much for reading and I hope thi...

Hello everyone! Today I'm bringing to you a review on the MAC Party Line lipstick. I've been wanting this lipstick for a while, and I've been avidly using it since. Here's a picture of the ingredients below: It's a lovely mid to deep tone of pinkish red. It's a cremesheen finish, which means that it has a bit of gloss and shine to it. Vibrant and bold once built up, but neutral and wearable when applied thinly. I read some reviews before buying this, and almost every reviewer had complaints of this migrating outside of the lip line. For me though, I've never had this issue; it wears for up to six hours without a need for touching up. Those six hours can only be achieved with no eating or drinking, though. I can safely say that this in no way migrates, smears, or feathers outside of the lip line. there's a delicious vanilla aroma to this lipstick, as is apparent with all of MAC's lip products. I hope you all enjoyed reading this! Pl...

Hello everyone; I hope you're all doing well on this Thursday morning! As promised, I'm brining you all a review on the Urban Decay Naked Skin Foundation. I have been using and loving this foundation ever since I bought it a few months ago. In fact, this foundation is featured in my previous post, my Sweat-Proof Summer Foundation Routine .  My skin type is oily, sensitive, and acne prone. I can easily get spots if my skin hates a product. One of the best things about this foundation is that it doesn't contain parabens. Let's jump straight into the review! Color. I have this in the shade 2.0. The shades that end in .0 have a yellow tone and the ones that end in .5 have a pink undertone. I have fair Asian skin that has definite yellow undertones. This foundation suits my skin perfectly. Texture&consistency. This foundation has a very liquid and runny texture. It literally slides off the back of my hand if I tilt it even slightly. Given the textur...

Image Credit to Sephora.com Hello everyone! Today I'm bringing to you yet another review on yet another powder type product. I'm sure by now you would know what it is from the title... but just in case, it's the Tarte Smooth Operator Amazonian Clay Finishing Powder. Such a long name, but anyway, let's get straight into the review! All right, to the important stuff: I really wanted to like this, and I used it for a while thinking that it worked amazingly; I had read reviews on this product being the miracle worker for oily skin, keeping people matte all day long; I had thought this was going to be the HG for me when I need to touch up. Now, all these things that I just listed are very exciting, but I didn't get any results with them. NONE. AT ALL. Instead, I was still very oily and shiny, and this powder broke me out so badly that if I used it, I would have a few new zits within either the same day or the next day. The good thing about this is that it makes th...

Today I have for you a review on the Maybelline FIT me! Powder. I've had this powder for almost two years and have only just noticed now that it doesn't suit my skin AT ALL! I can't believe that I had liked it for such a long time without any qualms... I use the shade 120 Classic Ivory, as you can probably tell from the picture above. I also made sure that I got the ingredients in with this shot, and from what I can tell, there aren't that many ingredients involved in this powder, but do note that talc is the first one listed. This powder has a very nice, smooth texture and at first glance, the color is just fine, but when I actually have this on, it turns my face extremely pink! I remember wearing this powder on top of a foundation that matched my skin perfectly and then looking into the mirror at lunch time and seeing that it had completely turned my face a pinkish color. Also, I've noticed that when I wear this powder, it makes me an oil slick...

Hello everyone! Today I'm bringing you a review of the Lioele Triple the Solution BB Cream with SPF 30 PA++. I got three sample sachets of this bb cream from Lioele Texas  for $1.99 plus shipping, but with your order, they let you pick out two samples and when I got my package, they gave me two extra sample sachets that was totally unexpected, but a nice surprise! I must say that shipping wise, they didn't send me a confirmation, so I went through a few loops with that, but it's worked out now. Anyway, let's get into the review. This bb cream has an extremely thick texture, so much so that as you can see from the picture, there's literally a blob of it that's standing up by itself! After blending it slightly, I can definitely still feel that it's a super thick texture, and very little is needed to cover the entire face because this spreads out so much that if I kept blending, it would probably cover my entire arm! The color is a bit yellow ...

Hello everyone, I hope you are all doing well! Today I have for you a review on the NARS Light Reflecting Setting Powder. I had never tried a NARS product before and was in desperate need of a powder since I was quickly running out of my bareMinerals Matte. With perfect timing, I received a $20 off of $50 email from Sephora, so I decided that it would be prime time to try out this powder, since it's quite pricey at $34. So, without further ado, let's get into my experience! As you can already tell from the picture above, the famous rubberized packaging that NARS has on many if not all of their products has picked up unwanted finger marks. I don't think I actually knew what other reviewers were complaining about regarding finger prints on the packaging until now that I've experienced them for myself. Aside from packaging, this is a setting powder, so the only shade for it is 'Translucent Crystal'. This is supposed to mattify the skin as well as give a glow...

Hello everyone, I'm so sorry for the lack of posts, it's been so hectic! Today I have for you all a post on my favorite mascara of all time, the Bobbi Brown Intensifying Long-Wear Mascara. I had gotten this as part of my 500 point perk at Sephora, which I included in my Mini Sephora Haul . Without further ado, let's get into the review!   This mascara is in my opinion the best one that I've come by because of it's longevity. This product doesn't smear at all, and I can wear it throughout the day with no worries or problems. Also, the small size of the brush is perfect for getting to every lash, top and bottom, easily, without the fear of poking my eye. Sometimes, with mascaras like Benefit's They're Real, I find myself always having to take a long time applying it carefully, while this one I can swipe on easily and quickly. I'm happy to report that it doesn't clump like crazy, and if you do experience some clumping, just brush it through w...

Hello all! I apologize for the delay in posts, school has been monopolizing all of my free time! Today, I have for you a post on the Garnier BB Cream for oily skin. I picked this up at my local Wal-Mart, for around $13, including tax.   I don't have anymore, so I simply inserted a promotional picture of it above for reference. I returned this product last Saturday, and the only reasons being are: it was simply too dark and too pink (I had purchased the light/medium shade) and, I suspect that it was breaking me out as well. I wanted this to work for me so badly, because of its amazing coverage and super light feeling on the skin, as well as the matte finish. But, alas, I couldn't deal with the color being off so much. I would look into the mirror at school and notice that my face was extremely pink!   As for its claims of controlling oil, I think it does, to an extent, and then its all just the same. Also, I may have found a better combination to control oil tha...

Hello everyone, I hope you are all doing well. I apologize for my recent absence. Today I want to tell all of you about my experience with the bareMinerals Matte foundation. The first face makeup I ever got was a powder, so I am quite partial to powder foundations; with that said, let's get into it! My mom had used bareMinerals on and off a few years ago, but she only used the original formula. When I was breaking out badly around two years ago, I decided to pull out the original bareMinerals and give it a try, even though it was in the wrong color for me. I mixed some other powder foundations to get a reasonable shade to match me, but after a few days of using the original formula, I noticed that every time my face would perspire, it would itch like crazy! Needless to say, I discontinued using the original, then I found that they had come out with the matte formula and went out to Sephora to buy it out of curiosity. I use the shade Golder Fair in this formula, it's...

Hello everyone! I know in my last post I stated that I would be doing an overview of my mom's favorite Shiseido products, well it has come to light that they may be causing a strange skin reaction for her right now, so I'm going to hold off on that for now. Today though, I have for you another Grail or Fail, this time on a more accessible and inexpensive product, the Maybelline Instant Age Rewind Primer. Let's get straight into it! I heard about this primer when I was searching for a dupe of my beloved BareMinerals Prime Time Foundation Primer in Original. I haven't repurchased that primer in quite a while, and though I have bought it twice, it was only the small travel size, which cost $14 in itself. My powder foundation never looked better or stayed longer on my oily skin than it did with that primer, so when I ran out, I tried a few other primers and noticed that the texture was not to my liking. I did some research and came across this, from the pictures that...

Hello everyone! Today, I have for you yet another review, on yet the same brand. I realized that looking through my skin care basket, I have this Shiseido Deep Cleansing Foam as well as three Shiseido White Lucent products, which I will most likely post a review on tomorrow. Anyway, today is all about the Deep Cleansing Foam, so without further ado, let's get into it! All right, now, keep in mind that I haven't used this cleanser in quite a long time, maybe a year and half or even two; the reasons will be stated in this review. I heard about this cleanser when I was with my mom at the Shiseido counter at our mall. The sales lady helping my mom suggested that I gave this a try when I told her of my skin concerns, though at that time, my skin was relatively clear, and didn't have a large amount of acne scarring or acne itself. I think I finally bought this a few months later, along with Josie Maran's Argan Oil at Sephora with a gift card. Some background into this ...

Hello everyone, I hope you are all doing well! Today, I have a review for you all, on the Shiseido Extra Smooth Sun Protection Cream SPF 38 PA +++ for Face. It's August now, and though it's nearing fall, it's still hot and sunny most days, at least where I am! Let's get into the review... I discovered this sunscreen through Xteeener's, or Christine's, videos. She was talking about this product through one of her hauls from a place like TJ Maxx if I can remember, and featured it in quite a lot of videos. The thing that really caught my attention though, is the way she used this sunscreen as a primer, saying that it helped to mattify and control the oil. Having very oily skin, I was immediately intrigued, though I held off buying it until this summer. Seeing Christine have such amazing results, I finally came across this in a TJ Maxx store near me and immediately snatched it up, thinking it was already an HG for me, sadly, that isn't the case. Here...