YO-HO! Year 2013 saw the second birthday of Bun Bun Makeup Tips. I'm thankful that my little blog has helped so many people with making informed decisions when it comes to purchasing makeup. Thank you for letting me feel the love! *muack
Here I present my top 13 favorite makeup products of 2013. (My mum innocently asked if I chose 13 because we stay on the 13th floor. LOL! How cute can my mum get? :D)
1. Lioele Dollish Veil Vita BB SPF 25
This has got to be the first one on the list coz I use it EVERY-SINGLE-DAY. It's a makeup primer, base, BB cream, foundation, sunscreen... ALL IN ONE! It does not turn my skin into a pasty grey - a typical characteristic of so many BB creams; there is no flashback when I take photos with a harsh flash; it feels lightweight on my skin.
Even though it does not profess to have oil control abilities, I can wear this on its own and it lasts many good hours without turning me into a greaseball. Gorgeous Purple (01) brightens up complexion and Natural Green (02) combats redness. My preference is Natural Green because I have redness and an uneven complexion. This just gives my skin a great canvas to work more magic on. I would wear this alone on days when the skin is obedient. Haha. See my good skin in this post! =)
If there's one product that can persuade me into believing all the hype about BB creams, the Lioele Dollish Vel Vita BB has to be it.
Get it online >> Lioele Dollish Veil Vita BB SPF 25
2. Estee Lauder Double Wear Stay-in-Place Makeup SPF 10
I discovered this during the later part of 2013 and it immediately ascended the throne of Best Foundation of 2013. It provides medium coverage so my skin looks like it breathes under it, and is very buildable without being chalky.
The thing that stole my heart must be the satin-like finish that goes on and stays on so wonderfully well on my oily skin. I'd do well with some loose powder, but doing without is pretty alright.
The only gripe I have about the Estee Lauder Double Wear Stay-in-Place is its dispensing method - the traditional screw top and pour-liquid-out-and-waste-product method. For that price and prestige, I'd much prefer to have a pump dispenser. ALL liquid foundations should come with pump dispensers! Hands up if you agree!
Get it online >> Estee Lauder Double Wear Stay-in-Place Makeup SPF 10
3. Guerlain Gloss D’Enfer Maxi Shine Lipgloss Cherry Swing 467
It was a close fight between this and Lancome Gloss in Love 385. I wore the Lancome one for clubbing when I was in Taiwan and it made me feel really sexy!I love both very much but Cherry Swing just a little more. They're both a similar shade of cherry pink with blue undertones and beautiful multi-dimensional sparkles which do not feel gritty on the lips. I guess the Guerlain one won by a margin because it's less pigmented (one of the rare times being pigmented turns out to be a whammy!) and thus more suitable for daily wear. It's the I-wanna-look-like-I'm-wearing-something-on-my-lips-but-not-too-much-to-look-dressed-up kind of lipgloss, you know?
I wore the Lancome one for clubbing when I was in Taiwan and it made me feel really sexy! So I guess the Lancome Gloss in Love is the 'special occasion' version of these two very similar lipgloss shades.
Get it online >> Guerlain Gloss D’Enfer Maxi Shine Lipgloss Cherry Swing 467
4. NARS Satin Lip Pencil Lodhi
When I told the NARS counter staff to get 'loh-dee' for me, she said 'loh-dye' and I thought 'oh damn it I must be wrong'. Turns out I was right and she wasn't! Anyway dee-dye-do-dum who cares, because LODHI IS AWESOME. Actually it should be the formula of the NARS Satin Lip Pencil that is awesome, being all creamy and gliding on my dry lips and lasting well.
Get it online >> NARS Satin Lip Pencil Lodhi
5. Shu Uemura Princess Palette
I usually bring one of my 4 (or do I have 5?) Z palettes with me when I travel. From my stash of eyeshadows, I'll pick and choose those I feel like wearing for the trip and drop them into my Z palette. For one of my trips in 2013 though, I challenged myself to bring one complete, undepotted palette and it had to be the Shu Uemura Princess Palette.
Granted, I do not own too many complete palettes because they hardly stay complete for too long once my inner depotting demon takes over and takes them apart. The Shu Uemura one is really sturdy and because I do like all (rare occurrence) of the shades in this palette, I let them be.
I wrote a review on the Shu Uemura Princess Palette, do check it out!
6. Shu Uemura Limited Edition 24K Gold Eyelash Curler
I count on this to curl and lift my lashes everyday. I have the original silver one and there's absolutely no difference in function between the silver and gold.
Get it online >> Shu Uemura Eyelash Curler
If you want more precise curl action, check out the Shu Uemura S Curl Eyelash Curler
7. Mascara Guard
I'm gonna share my greatest mascara secret with you guys! Okie, it's not really a secret because I've mentioned it before... but not often! This has to be the greatest invention created to complement the whole mascara application process. I could NOT do without it, would not do without it! It makes applying mascara so easy and quick. Just hold the mascara guard against your eyelid and apply mascara without worrying about getting it all over your eyeshadow/eyeliner.
Steps:
- Curl lashes
- Apply mascara with help from mascara guard
- Comb through lashes with mascara guard (opposite end)
Get it online >> Mascara Guard
8. Lioele Volume & Curling Mascara
It's gotta be something excellent - or maybe very lousy - for me to allocate one full post on a single mascara. When I had the Lioele Volume & Curling Mascara, I wore it 90% of the time, with the remaining 10% trying to make others work but still ultimately crawling back to the Lioele one.
Get it online >> Lioele Volume & Curling Mascara
9. Make Up Geek Eyeshadow Shimma Shimma
This could be the only eyeshadow I've ever hit pain with, and that's because I use it not as an eyeshadow but a highlight for the nose and cheekbones. Whenever I have time to spare for highlighting, Shimma Shimma goes on. I can do without contouring, but not highlighting because my face is pretty flat.
Get it online >> Make Up Geek Eyeshadow
10. Make Up Store Eyedust Sand
I just turned it upside down to confirm the shade name and I've got shimmer bits on my fingers - not the best travel companion, but an essential in highlighting the inner corner of my eyes. Honestly, that's all Sand does, but it does it well and that's all that matters. Specialization at its best, I'd say.
11. Lioele Gel Liner
Tightlining with a gel liner is a must-have, must-do, must-use whenever I put on makeup. The Lioele Gel Liner has surprisingly served me very well, didn't have high hopes for any brand of gel liner since they become stupid and smudge like crazy upon expiration. Its performance has surpassed those of Bobbi Brown Black Ink and MAC Blacktrack. And 10000x better than the one from Inglot (I think I really got a bad batch).
I use this solely for tightlining ever since it stopped working well as a creamy gel liner for the upper lash line. It's just amazing that it has lasted so long and still works.
Get it online >> Lioele Gel Liner
12. Chanel Rouge Coco Shine 87 Rende-vous
The prettiest and most wearble pink for any occasion.
Get it online >> Chanel Rouge Coco Shine 87 Rende-vous
13. MAC Eyeshadow Shroom
This pot is my second, not because I hit pan with the first but because it became dry and would not appear at all after a very short while after I bought it online from some unreliable source. LOL. It must either be fake or past its expiry date, I convinced myself. So I went out and bought it at a real MAC store. I'm glad I can finally attest to all the positive reviews on Shroom!
Get it online >> MAC Eyeshadow Shroom
And there you have it, my top 13 favorite for the year 2013! I didn't want to restrict myself by choosing one item from each category, hence no eyebrow products or blush in this compilation coz I'm still on the hunt for the ones to love!
What were your favorite products in 2013? Name your top 3? 😀 How about sharing with me some good blushes and eyebrow products to get me started on my list for 2014?
