Shine Bright Like a Diamond: A True Knight in Shining Armour

I can’t help myself when it comes Armour Beauty. The last time I reviewed them, it was definitely time for me to send it over to Theo, the founder of the rocking lip gloss brand. She loved it! Then, she sent me two new lip glosses, which are as equally beautiful and lovely as the others. However, don’t be fooled by the colors of the tube.

The two glosses I received are Marilyn (clear iridescent) and Kashmir (light pink). Although they may look like the typical colors you see in a drugstore or your old Lip Smackers/Bonnebell glosses, they have extremely different results when you apply in them person.

Top: Kashmir | Bottom: Marilyn

Marilyn is a beautiful iridescent with fine micro glitters that make the lips pop. What’s cool about the glitter is that it actually changes on the skin – think of it like a mood ring! In the tube, it’s bluish, but on my lips, it made it come out as a pink. The product is extremely similar to Maybelline’s Shine Shot in Prismatic, but this is more subtle. Marilyn goes so well with practically anything thanks to its chameleonic ability to transform! Talk about being a true diamond out there!!

On the other hand, Kashmir is a bit more like a classic pink gloss. The gloss itself has some fine micro glitter, but you really cannot see it. This shade is mean to be a more everyday shade whether it be going to brunch with the ladies, meeting up the parents, going on a first date, work, etc! Man, it even works as a fun Coachella beauty accessory!! I mean, Kashmir is inspired by Led Zeppelin and you cannot go wrong with wanting to pull out that shaggy white Penny Lane coat alongside your favorite distressed vintage jeans that you’ve thrifted a weekend ago. Talk about the ultimate cute girl look without being too basic!

Verdict: 😋😋😋😋😋

The formula is an everlasting stay-put gloss. You can re-apply throughout the entire day; however, it doesn’t have to be on its own. Thanks to the sheer texture, you can actually mix it with other glosses or with each other to have a killer 3D lip look. See? Isn’t it worth part of the deal?!

Believe me, you NEED to get this. If you are a Led Zep fan, GO FREAKING GET IT!! No spin around town is complete without “Kashmir”. As for my Monroe-loving gals, just rock ’em proud with diamonds.

Orange Morange!

New York Fashion Week may be over, but trying out a new look past Fashion Week never gets old. Last week, I was so bored of sporting my traditional blackish brown hair. While rocking my natural hair looks great, it didn’t seem to satisfy well me well since everyone and their mother had to stand out in a concrete zoo. Like a call for a mate, I decided to head out to my local Ricky’s and grab a bottle of orange spray dye along with some Manic Panic Dye Hard gel.

The moment I opened it, I was purely in love. I wanted to channel my inner Gwen Stefani meets Milla Jovovich in The Fifth Element, which I did for Lyz Olko’s fashion show and afterparty.

Me at the Lyz Olko afterparty | Photo by Nicky Digital

Why orange, you ask? Lately, it’s becoming the go-to shade for everyone: Georgia May Jagger, Teyana Taylor (FYI: I stood by her 2x once at a magazine party in September and she was really really tall!! I kinda regret not saying “Hi”.) and Kylie Jenner. Although it’s been two years since we last saw Rihanna and Miley Cyrus with orange hair, their go-to color feels so oh-so-fresh. Thanks to the warm undertones, orange is easy to pull off for almost anyone – including myself. But, how exactly can we pull it off IRL?

1. The Edie

Glossier Boy Brow | Milk Makeup Eye Pigment in Rager | Pat McGrath Dual Ended Marker |  NYX Intense Butter Gloss in Peanut Brittle | Huda Beauty Lip Contour in Bombshell | Glossier Haloscope | Glossier Stretch Concealer | NARS Radiant Creamy Concealer 

The late Miss Sedgwick may be a bleached blonde, but had she dyed her hair orange, it would’ve been equally fantastic. As my favorite go-to hairstyle, it can make any outfit look classy. Since orange is a VERY strong color, you can never go wrong with adding a bit of spice. Try this with cute cat eye, metallic eyeshadow (more within the silver range) and nude gloss for the classic Factory girl look.

2. The Riri

Y.S. Park Barettes | Glossier Boy Brow | Milk Makeup Eye Vinyl in Bridge | Max Factor Mascara | Maquillage Blush | MAC x Rihanna Riri Woo | Lipstick Queen Shine in Black | Glossier Stretch Concealer | NARS Radient Creamy Concealer

I love myself some Bad Gal Riri. As THE style icon of our generation, Riri ain’t afraid to take the bobby pin out and show it off. Whether it be an accent piece around the face or for a pair of cute baby half buns, she can never do any wrong. The overall look is funky fresh! For the full Riri effect, do it with a darker or frosted red lip, a nice nude eyeshadow (or bare lids) and killer brows. If you wanna do it my way, dab on some eye gloss!

3. The Miley

Glossier Boy Brow | Glossier Stretch Concealer | Urban Decay Heavy Metal Glitter in Amp | Urban Decay 24/7 Glide-On Eyeliner in LSD | Max Factor Mascara | MAC x Miley Cyrus Viva Glam 2 | Wicked Hippie Face Jewels

Oh, Miley! Why can’t I get enough of you?! Since that twerkathon, those two little buns were forever stuck on my head. Although Miss Cyrus isn’t perceived as a style icon in the same eyes as Miss Fenty, she is equally influential. In that sense, she’s inspired me to play around with my growing out pixie. Like, who can forget about that pixie bun? Smiley Miley may rock this with a “my lips, but better” color on the regular, don’t stop trying out a new look without an orange-red lip and blue eyeliner.

Which look do you wanna try out? Can’t wait to see you run this town in orange hair!!!

#HERSSENTIALS: The Reversible Bomber Jacket

Winter is ready to be on its last legs, but the transition between the cold chill and the spring breeze isn’t the easiest task to master. Transitional weather fashion is still kinda tricky for me as I grew up in Singapore; however, you can absolutely cop a new closet staple: the reversible bomber jacket.

Based on my obsession for outerwear, my #1 go-to piece is a neb-vintage ’00s Ed Hardy army green nylon bomber jacket.

Vintage velvet hat | Uniqlo turtleneck and bomber | Vintage ’90s camisole | RE/DONE jeans | Pop & Suki bag | Karen Walker sunglasses | Miista shoes

Last year, I bought this ‘lil beauty at The Corner Store, an L.A.-based vintage store. It had a studio space where customers could try on the clothes. While the shop had a huge Instagram presence, this jacket was never on the ‘gram. It was in a rack, ready to be taken home by a new owner. At that time, I was looking for a nice transitional jacket as L.A. had nice warm weather and the East Coast (FYI: I was visiting a family friend in Boston and we were also going to NYC on a fun day trip that weekend) was beyond frigidly cold. Not only was it chic, it kept me crazy warm!

Now, I proudly wear this treasure with pride. While bombers out in today’s market are only meant to show the outer shell, let’s not overlook the inner shell.

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Vintage beret | Uniqlo turtleneck | Vintage Motley Crue shirt | Pop & Suki bag | Vivenne Westwood ring | Vintage tattoo and peace rings | Custom made Bombe Clothing pants | Miista shoes

Normally, I won’t rock my bomber by showing the inner shell; however, it surprisingly works well! If your bomber jacket has a unique design on the inside, you might as well show it off.

See? Look at what the late Christian Audigier did here. Although Mr. Audigier may no longer be on this Earth, his design genius kinda proved that everyone needed to/at least needs to get a fun bomber jacket.

Trust me, your Mondays ain’t gonna be mundane after all!

All photos by Hallie Geller

 

Forever Frrresh: How Milk Makeup Slays the Game

More than a week ago, Milk Makeup announced their new spring collection and I couldn’t get enough. I felt so tempted to order them online from Sephora, but I couldn’t be bothered to spend a lot of money on shipment. Packed with new shades in its Eye Pigment and Oil Lip Stain ranges, it was about damn time that I go to my local Sephora the day of the Marc Jacobs fashion show, which was incidentally, a couple of blocks along the way.

At Sephora, I picked up two new shades: Rager (a cool icy blue that has a silver-y metallic base) and Feelz (a nice plum-based red violet berry).

Don’t they look amazing!? (Sorry if my photo was too blurry – I just happened to lose my control over the camera when I took these!)

Verdict: 😋😋😋😋1/2

To be fair, it was actually worth the Instagram hype. Since Milk Makeup was literally made for the girl on the go (like myself), the products really STAYED ON. The Eye Pigment never moved around. It also never faded after more than 5 hours of wear! When I had to remove it, I had to make sure that I used a strong micellar water makeup remover to really remove that pigment.

For the Oil Lip Stain, it was surprisingly conditioning. It left my lips feeling soft and juicy – just like vintage Angelina Jolie back in her ’90s heyday. What’s fascinating about the stain was that it left my lips into a nice neon pink finish. Although the color was advertised to be dark, my lips initially matched the tube. Then, the change in color happened due to wear. Over time, the oil gets absorbed into the lips and based on my hunch, it could’ve been the main factor into changing the color. Other than that, it was amazing product that truly lasted.

Application-wise, a little would go a long way. For instance, the Eye Pigment would be really strong if you applied a lot. That led to unintentional creasing and frankly, I had a bit of a difficulty applying it myself since I didn’t know how to control the amount. I needed to practice putting on a certain amount on my eyelids. The perk of this product was that you could go for a sheer wash (by smearing it across the lids) or make it go heavy. If you did the sheer way, it would look really crazy good with the Eye Vinyl (which I tried out myself). The shade and application had that Jawbreaker-esque ’90s throwback feel.

Ditto with the Oil Lip Stain. When I tried to get the product out, I accidentally squeezed the tube too hard and the rollerball popped out, staining my off-white Iro sweater. 🙊 (Sorry, Milk Makeup team!) Thankfully, I was able to put the rollerball back in and get the product out. When it came out, it was just a teeny tiny amount. That tiny amount was good enough to provide me sufficient coverage and hydration. Man, even the stain could last for HOURS!

If I ran out and started all over again, I would definitely stock up.

UPDATE: I contacted Milk Makeup’s customer service about the glitch I had with the Oil Lip Stain and they advised me to return it. I was able to return the product although I lost at least 25% of it from the spillage. If you are planning to buy it, I hope you have better luck with it than I did!

Stick to your armour: this beauty brand makes lethal lip gloss!

Knock ’em dead, kid. Armour Beauty ain’t afraid to draw its sword and slay the beauty game. Considering that beauty these days is all about the whole matte lip look and Kylie Jenner brows as well as the opaquely glossy lip, nothing brings in more fun and sparkle than Armour Beauty’s lip glosses!

Founded by musician/model/entrepreneur Theo Kogan, Armour Beauty was founded (in 2008) on the basis that lip glosses needed to stay put while she performed on stage. You know how glosses transfer so easily on surfaces? Kogan decided to put in her magic to make everlasting lip glosses. Seriously, this was NO laughing matter.

Nine years later, here I am in 2017 trying on these fabled stay-put lip glosses. The shades I’m wearing are Nirvana (a sweet clear sparkly baby pink), Gazzari’s (sparkly light hot pink), Cat Club (opaque hot pink) and Foxy (deep chocolate brown). The first time I ever heard about this brand, my mom told me that it made super nice glosses. Setting you back with $24 a pop, the glosses contain oils AND butters that are designed to make the color stick. While it’s also cruelty-free (yay!), I also like the fact that it is also paraben-free. Talk about do-good beauty! Not to mention, every single shade is inspired by music.

As I take a long sip from the Beautylish (which sells the glosses) Kool Aid, is it ever really worth the hype?

Here is me wearing Gazzari’s:

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Next up, this is me rocking Cat Club:

See the similarities and differences here? Well, check out Nirvana:

See, isn’t that so clear!? Last but not least, look how Foxy I look! 😜

Verdict: 😋😋😋😋😋

You know what, I am beyond AHHHAAABBBSSSSSESSED! The gloss was easy to apply and evenly distribute thanks to the doe foot applicator. Safe to say, the scent takes me back to grade school when I used to go crazy for chocolate or fruit-scented lip glosses. The smell of Gazarri’s compared to Foxy is slightly different: the former smells like chocolate whereas the latter smells like citrus. The scent is all from the oils and butters (probably, cocoa?) that were used to make this gloss.

What makes this gloss brand so different than all the others is that you need to vibe to it. If you like the shade Nirvana without listening to the band, you will be at loss here because you need to feel the essence of Kurt Cobain screaming his head off to distorted guitars. The same goes for Gazzari’s and Cat Club, which are heavily inspired by the heavy metal music of the ’80s. If you are into good old-fashioned Hendrix or wanna channel your inner Pam Grier (a.k.a. Foxy Brown/muse for Beyoncé’s Foxxy Cleopatra), you’d really dig Foxy for a fun, bold color. All of those lip colors have a sentimental attachment to it, which is why I bought them.

Speaking of staying power, it goes on for a long time and can stay on. Even if the color fades a little, the subtle tint of shade still remains there without creating the Kim Mathers effect. Safe to say, all shades are VERY versatile – you can wear ’em on a night out with your girls, fun work event or on a shopping trip. Even if you need to go on job interview after job interview, the pink shades are the best.

Based on the quality, texture and appeal, it is definitely worth everything.

 

All Eyez on Me: Milk Makeup’s Eye Vinyl

Ahh….the wonders of a new year. Since the Lunar New Year, I’ve been on a binge to snap up some makeup. As someone who is more of a lip person than an eye person, why not I get some more eyes on me?

Enter Milk Makeup. Last year, it was launched by Milk Studios and the entire concept of the line is revolved around effortless high maintenance. Basically, you get the super hot “fresh off the editorial” look with very few products. In that case, take the Eye Vinyl. It’s an eye gloss that’s meant to replace your Vaseline and eyeshadow. Sounds dope, right?!

Believe me, Georgie Greville, the brains behind Milk Makeup, has me convinced that it’s time to replicate that Kate Moss circa ’94 look with the eye gloss. As much as I want to cop that look, is it really worth spending $20 for something you can do at home for like, $6?

Verdict: 😋😋😋😋

A few days ago, I splurged on it after the Sephora saleslady told me that it was “formulated differently on the eyes”. Considering that clear lip gloss can do the same thing, I have to admit that the initial high of wearing it was amazing: I had Moss-esque eyelids and felt like a freaking runway star. But after an hour or two, the sheen kinda faded, but it was still there.

Thankfully, there wasn’t any creasing with this product; however, I hated the fact that I had to keep on reapplying it. What’s nice about the applicator is that you can use it to touch it up. While it can run the risk of having goop running down your eyes like that lady in Mulan (seriously, it happened to me when I tried it on with mascara), it’s always best to apply a little before you go all the way; hence, the small amount of liquid in the pen.

The Eye Vinyl may not be an easy product to use and/or pull off easily, but if you are dying to try a new look, go for it!

#OOTD: Another One Bites the Dust

Uniqlo turtleneck | vintage DARE tee | vintage kimono | Re/Done jeans | Current Mood bag | Vivienne Westwood and The Cobrashop rings | Miista boots 

Are you ready for this new look? Be prepared to get yourselves hanging out at the edge of your seat: the kimono has officially arrived!

Silky smooth with sleek lines and beautiful embroidered accents, this killer red kimono is not just meant to be kept in the house. Last fall, my friends and I went to A Current Affair, where vintage vendors from coast to coast pimped out the hottest merch. While it was a cold rainy day, nothing could make me happier than to splurge my cash on new clothes. Given that I literally lived for statement pieces, my eyes went weak at the sight of a red silk embroidered kimono. Long and straight with sleek angular cuts, it was destined to belong to me.

Although kimonos aren’t zero degrees Celsius-friendly, I ain’t ever letting that thing collect some dust.

Photos by Hallie Geller 

See how much potential you can have with this?! Throw on some layers, grab your favorite jeans and channel your inner Mary-Kate Olsen.

DISCLAIMER: I bought my vintage DARE tee from Shop Exile, but you can get a similar shirt on Etsy. The clothes that don’t have hyperlinks are either vintage, out of stock or discontinued pieces. And with Starbucks, I am not sponsored by them.

 

Prime Up Your Skin with Glossier’s Moisturizer

It’s snowing, it’s pouring, but your girl ain’t snoring. Not in the literal sense, but in the sense that I cannot afford to miss out on the newest beauty products. Given that NYC has cold and harsh winters that can either make you go happy (if you’ve never seen the snow) or insane (like you never want to get out the damn house), the one thing that never fails to brighten up my day is the new Priming Moisturizer Rich.

Frankly, this is the not the first time I’ve tried skincare from this line. When Glossier was released in the fall of 2014, I was one of the few who lined up and snagged their Priming Moisturizer at the click of the mouse. While their Priming Moisturizer was felt soft and baby smooth across the skin, this new product is purposely made to be extra thick. (More like Betty Crocker vanilla frosting thick than Kylie Jenner thick)

With thick moisturizers, they are great at nourishing my thirsty and parched skin. However, I also have oily and sensitive skin (as diagnosed by my dermatologist) that’s prone to breaking out. For me, breakouts are always caused by eating A) gluten, B) dairy, C) stress and unfortunately, D) super rich moisturizers with ingredients that unintentionally clog my pores. As much as I wanted to bring this bad girl home, the pangs of apprehension hit my stomach before I even thought of pulling out $25 for a tub.

This is me at the Glossier Showroom rocking my new glow

Verdict: 😋😋😋😋

The thing about products with a ton of hype is that I am expected to believe in it. This time, I have to admit that it really does the job of keeping my skin in tip-top condition. It makes my neck SO SOFT like baby’s skin and my cheeks feel like velvet. Apart from that, the one con is that too much richness in the moisturizer leaves my face feeling a little sticky. Considering that not everyone’s skin is the same, it tends to be a little sticker on oilier complexions like mine. Despite that one flaw, it does a phenomenal job at keeping my face fresh and dewy!

What are your favorite moisturizers? Will you go out and buy Glossier’s moisturizer?

UPDATE: I have returned this product as it made me break out after a few days of using it. I didn’t realize that my skin was not able to take it in as I had hoped. If you have not tried it yet and would like to try it, I hope you have better luck than I did!