Last week, I had the opportunity to attend the Spring 2017 ACI Beauty Preview. I always look forward to going to this event and learning about the new launches, and then sharing it here! Since I hate having long & wordy posts and try to avoid it as much as possible, I decided to split this event into two parts.
We started off with Stila. Take a guess what the product above is. It looks like lip gloss or some sort of lip product, right? That’s what I thought at least. But, it is actually part of their new mermaid inspired line, Magnificent Metals, and they are actually eyeshadows!
I wish I took a picture of the swatch, but sadly I only put it on my Instastory and it’s gone by now. =( The shades were AMAZING. It had some intergalactic, out of this world vibes but with a hint of sparkle and girliness. This is definitely something for the bold and brave, as you will definitely be getting some (good) attention when wearing this!
The next brand we were brought to was Paul & Joe. Paul & Joe are always super creative and detailed in their packaging, so I’m always excited to see what they come up with next. Just when I thought their cat lipsticks from previous seasons were cool, they did it again with their cat shaped lipsticks!
The pinkish-red lipstick in the middle goes on pretty sheer, while the grey ones go on to match your lip colour. I find that Japanese products (Paul & Joe is made in Japan), they are all about the sheer and subtle which Paul & Joe does perfectly, with a huge dosage of cute!
Another picture of the cat lipstick because it is just too cute.
Continuing along the cat trend, the brushes in the back are actually cat paws! How cute! They were so incredible soft as well. I believe the box contains a blush, but I was too distracted by the soft and fluffy cat paw to be 100% sure.
Paul & Joe usually house their products in paper boxes, that have very cute and detailed designs. These are the new blush and bronzer releases.
Perhaps one of the only Paul and Joe products that weren’t cat themed? I was given a sample of one of their nail polishes here and will be writing a review for that this week as well!
You’re probably tired of me gushing over how cute and girly Paul & Joe’s products are, so we will move on to CLEAN. CLEAN is a perfume brand that I haven’t seen around much apart from in the blogosphere, but they do deserve more attention and love.
As their name suggests, CLEAN products smell very fresh and well, clean. One of my favourites from them is a perfume that smells like fresh laundry.
This season, they focused on two summer fragrances, Ultimate Beach Day and Lovegrass. At first, I was a bit reluctant of how the Ultimate Beach Day could smell like a day on the beach, but damn, it really did smell like a day on the beach. It smelled exactly like summer and sunshine, which I am not sure how they perfected it but they did.
The second one was Lovegrass that I didn’t like as much as the Ultimate Beach Day. To me, it had more of a heavier scent and I prefer lighter scents on myself. I think it would be suitable for both females and males.
I’ve never been one to try self tanners or even go to the tanning salon, and have never done both. Does that make me a bad beauty blogger? =P
The main reason why I’ve never tried self tanners is because they look so intimidating and daunting! I always hear horror stories of people not doing it correctly and ending up looking like an orange or waaayyy too dark.
But, I think I do want to try using a self tanner one of these days. I would probably start with the St. Tropez gradual tan, on the left. That way, I can slowly adjust to it instead of somehow messing it up.
The blue bottle in the middle is the same day tan that you spray all over your body. What’s new about it is that it has a 360 degree nozzle so it’s easier to reach your back! The squeeze tube beside it is essentially a body highlighter, you rub this over the parts of your body that you want to have a nice tan sparkle.
This post is getting quite long so I think I will end it here! Part two will be shorter and feature Ardell, Korres, and Bliss.
My mom had actually bought this mascara and I was just using it once in awhile, because it was conveniently there. It is housed in a pink tube, which makes it easy to stand out.
Application: I’m not sure if this brush is actually “revolutionary” but DAMN, does it work well with my lashes. And that is RARE! This mascara goes on evenly, and does not clump my eyelashes at all. It separates and lengthens each lash in a very natural way.
Here is a picture of before and after the mascara! My lashes definitely look longer, but still very natural and darker.
Although I do follow a few Asian beauty accounts on social media, I had yet to hear of Heme. I was told that this brand was everywhere in Taiwan, which is why she decided to buy it for me.
The two shades I received was brown and grey. The brown definitely looked more like a gold, due to how shimmery it was.
Although the eyeshadow is in the packaging of an eyeliner, it is definitely more of an eyeshadow. The tip of the eyeshadow pencil is pretty thick, so you are unable to draw a wing. 
essence Brow Definer: Well, 2016 was the year I finally tried essence cosmetics, and I wish I had tried it sooner. So far, I’ve tried their liquid lipsticks, lipsticks, lip liner and eyebrow pencil. The brow definer pencil undoubtedly was one of my 2016 favourites and I use it pretty much everyday! For $2, it does a great job and lasts the whole day, as long as you don’t rub it or sleep or something. My pencil is nearing the end and almost getting to the point where it is too short to sharpen. I will definitely be repurchasing this product again!
Estee Lauder Double Wear Foundation: My Holy Grail high-end foundation is the Urban Decay Naked foundation, which I still really love. At the Estee Lauder media event, I was introduced to their Double Wear Foundation line, which I was told was a classic favourite. I was really impressed with this foundation, and love it just as much as the Urban Decay Naked!
Kylie Lip Kit: I never gave much thought to the Kardashian/Jenner clan or Kylie’s products, but one of my best friends tried her lip kit and raved about it. Since then, I have become a huge fan of Kylie’s products for their beautiful pigmentation and long wear! I’ve only reviewed the matte liquid lipstick on the blog, but in the past month, I also tried one of her lip glosses and the eyeshadow palette (by accident, funny story LOL). I will probably be reviewing those when I get around to taking the photos! So many new products to review, so little time!
KORRES Wild Rose Brightening Oil: This was earlier on in the year, but for a good three weeks, I solely used the KORRES Wild Rose Brightening Oil. In those three weeks, I noticed a dramatic difference in the quality of my skin. It also mixed beautifully into foundations for a nice, dewy finish. I don’t use this as often as I want because I’m reluctant to finish the product, which is a bit sill of me (otherwise known as not “seh duk” in Cantonese).
Seche Vite top coat: I started off the year with this wonderful purchase, which has ruined me for the better. I do not use any other top coats, nor do I trust any of them to perform at the same quality and price that Seche Vite does. Seriously, this stuff is amazing. It makes your cheap nail polish look like a million bucks, and does not chip AT ALL.
What it says (Taken from Sephora):
Here is a picture of my eyebrows without the brow gel. Although I do like my eyebrows without filling them in, I like to enhance them and make them look even better.
Here are my eyebrows after! As you can tell, there is a big difference. My brows are thicker and fuller now.
Then, I like to extend the shape of my eyebrows a bit past my natural hairs, because I think my face is quite round and having shorter brows make it look even rounder.