Sale Alert: Sweet Anthem BOGO Jan 2013!

Last day to get in your purchases during one of Sweet Anthem’s very rare sales!

http://sweetanthemperfumes.com/blogs/heartbeets/7178006-out-with-the-old-bogo-sale

Out with the Old BOGO Sale

Every time the menu change happens, I always feel a little depressed. Losing a member of my fragrance line-up is like going through a bad breakup. I just want to cry a lot, eat all the ice cream, maybe get really drunk at least once, and watch Buffy the Vampire Slayer for a week while I avoid the world. I actually think this most recent menu change might have given me gray hairs. Ow, it hurt. But I’m better now – just like with that bad break up, I had a moment of catharsis and my world seems new and fresh, as if it is covered with new-fallen snow. Glistening and beautiful and full of possibility.

But before we get into good things… let’s talk about REALLY good things! Starting tomorrow (Wednesday 1/16) at 12pm PST, we’ll be having a pretty ridiculous BOGO 50% off Sale. Here’s the deets.

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Out with the Old Sale

We’ve really outdone ourselves. Starting Wednesday (1/16) — THAT’S TOMORROW — at 12pm PST, you can enjoy the following:

1. Buy any Sweet Anthem perfume and get 50% off any other perfume oil, solid perfume, or eau de parfum.
2. Buy any Sweet Anthem perfume sample set and get 50% off any other sample set.
3. Buy any Bespoke perfume and get 50% off any additional Bespoke perfume.
4. Enjoy 15% off any of our brands, using the code “formylove” when you checkout.
5. Enjoy 60% off already marked down overstocked items, including $3 5ml twists and $10 eau de parfums. Stock is very limited. They will be live in this section when the sale starts!

How to shop: To take advantage of the BOGO discount, you will need to click the “checkout” button on your shopping cart before you can add the 50% off items. You must have one of the qualifying items in your cart to take advantage of the deal.  You can go back to your shopping cart if you need to add anymore special instructions (i.e. notes for custom fragrances) before proceeding with the checkout process.
Valentine’s Day with ease: You can enter up to two additional addresses and we’ll send your gifts directly to your Valentines at no extra charge! Just tell us what needs to go where in the “special instructions” section of your shopping cart! <3
Fine print: The sale begins Wednesday, 1/16 at 12pm PST. The sale ends Saturday, 1/19 at 6pm PST. It is good in store and online, though availability in store may be subject to Wednesday and Thursday sale action. All items purchased during the sale will have guaranteed Valentine’s Day delivery for domestic customers. We’ll do the best we can for our international customers, but customs can sometimes squash our efforts. Our regular turnaround time applies to everything.

Believe in Truth? Belif Hungarian Water Essence Review

No, I didn’t come up with that tagline, but  I believe Belif, a Korean skincare label did

Here’s a 10ml sample sized Belif Hungarian Water Essence that came together with an issue of Cosmopolitan magazine a few months back.

Do you believe belif?

Belif’s website doesn’t list the ingredients, but does share the following blurb:

 Product Description

This essence contains hydration secrets of the legendary Hungarian Water that enabled Hungarian Queen Elizabeth to maintain her beauty into old age. This product is applied cool like a spritz of water, and clings to the skin lightly without stickiness, prolonging suppleness and softness.

 No addition of
Mineral oil, Synthetic fragrance, Synthetic dyes, Synthetic preservatives, Animal-origin ingredients.

To use
After applying toner, pump two to three times in your palm and apply gently over the face, moving along the skin surface.

I love the nifty 10ml plastic pump bottle with cap, which is perfect for throwing into my gym bag. It also dispenses the right amount to use – 2 pumps will work for the face and neck.

This is lightweight, non-tacky and gets absorbed by the skin in a matter of seconds after spreading it about on a damp face. Very impressive. Most essences I know take some time to sink in, but this doesn’t. A moisturiser is required if you have combination, normal to dry skin. There is a very light fragrance, akin to rosewater, but not as strong and dissipates quickly.

While I do feel some hydration going on, it’s not as impressive as Hada Labo’s Super Hyaluronic Acid Moisturising Lotion. There’s also no “doink doink” after-feel to the skin (Korean and Japanese skincare fans will know what this means, if not, refer to the ads on Youtube )

If you’re in the Tropics and are after a very lightweight essence, have very oily skin and don’t mind not knowing the exact full ingredients, you will love this. For those with *ahem* more matured skin, this won’t do much for you, except in a pinch.

~*Item reviewed was a skincare sample, opinions are my own*~

Seriously Dehydrated Lips Fall In!: Mukti Macadamia & Honey Lip Balm

Being quite the… erm… skincare addict that likes to try new products from new lines, it takes quite a “wow” product for me to do a double-take on a staple, like a lip balm.

#drumroll# Meet the Mukti Macadamia & Honey Lip Balm.

Mukti Goodness!

15g of one of the best lip balms I’ve ever encountered housed in a no frills, screw top glass jar to give you bang for buck, both in quantity and moisturising your puckers.

From Australia, www.muktiorganics.com is carried by Bud Cosmetics in Singapore and is available for S$26 at http://www.budcosmetics.com/product_info.php?manufacturers_id=39&products_id=1324&osCsid=4bc60546e922baf0275c3c19725fbb61

I was lucky enough to get one in Vivawoman‘s Dec 2011 giveaway

The ingredients are simple and wholesome, including certified organic ones. There is Beeswax, which renders this non-vegan. While nothing extraordinary, the formula has just the right mix to make this lip balm one of the most moisturising, non-tacky and non-thick formulas I’ve ever tried!

Gimme honey, honey, honey

The contents are  unassuming pale honey coloured, slightly waxy and lightly glossy. It is slightly grainy on application (might be the shea), but it becomes totally smooth once those tiny grains melt on the warmth of your lips. The natural scent of the lip balm is very pleasant without any fake perfume-y note. I get honey, a light touch of macadamia and orange/mandarin. A unisex and light scent that fades away quickly. Without eating, drinking or overly licking my lips, the lip balm lasts over a good hour on me. It also has a subtle taste that appeals, with the slightest touch of honey, but not enough to get you licking big time. The lip balm moisturises instantly, softening fine lines and dry bits. I enjoy using this both in the day and at night.

While many would prefer a tube instead of a jar, as the latter requires you to dip your finger in, I’ll live with the packaging, as this WORKS. After slathering a thin layer onto my lips, I use the rest remaining on my fingertip on the cuticles to provide them some moisture too.

Highly recommended if you’re not vegan, but are into organic ingredients and a non-coloured, naturally scented lip balm. Your parched lips will thank you!

~*Item received in a giveaway, but opinions are my own*~

Skincare Review: Laneige Firming Sleeping Pack

I’ve tried sleeping pack samples on and off from several Korean labels, but none really impressed me, until I came across Laneige’s Water Sleeping Pack_Ex, which I’ll review in another entry. Sleeping packs/masks take the place of the moisturiser – the last step to the skincare regime at night. You leave them on, go to bed with them and wash it off the next morning with water.

What got me more excited is the Laneige Firming Sleeping Pack, which I purchased for US$23 during an online sale from www.cosme-de.com that offered free shipping. Shipping time took a week from Hong Kong to Singapore, with the sleeping pack securely packed within a sturdy box and bubble-packed.

The Laneige Firming Sleeping Pack is housed in a 50ml heavy duty plastic jar that comes with a little scoop. Not the most hygienic of packaging, although it’d enable you to get to every single last ml. There are no ingredients listed and I can’t find any on the Laneige site.

In lieu of ingredients, the leaflet enclosed with the pack has a short description of certain ingredients within, such as SleePOP, which you can read about in the photo above. I’m interpreting the Sleep Line mentioned on the leaflet as sleep wrinkles that can come about if you sleep on the side or on your face on the pillow, which leaves lines on the face when you wake up.

 

Although there’s no expiry date, the date of manufacture is printed on the bottom of the plastic jar.

The screw top lid opens to unveil a sealed opening, which peels open easily.

The formula of the sleeping pack is really interesting. A milky shade with a viscosity that’s fun to watch. Each time you scoop a dent in the contents, the rest of it flows back seamlessly.

My thoughts:

I use about 3/4 tsp of the sleeping pack on my face and neck as the last step to my skincare ritual at night, after the serums and without a moisturiser. Unlike the water sleeping pack_ex, the finish of this is somewhat greasier and takes longer to dry on my face (about 20 minutes). The perfume is stronger and somewhat flowery, compared to the water sleeping pack_ex, probably to cater to a more matured age group. For those with oily skins, you might not want to layer too much under the firming sleeping pack. No marks are left on my pillow.

When I wake up the next morning and wash off the firming sleeping pack, I do see some firming of my jawline. I have a slight double chin that’s more prominent on my left than right side and the left definitely looks tighter and less obvious. No sleep lines were found on my face too. Skin is reasonably moisturised, but not as much as after the water sleeping pack_ex.

However, the effects probably last only a few hours before they wear off. I use this about 2x a week, rotating with the water sleeping pack_ex.

I do enjoy the temporary lifting effect and have purchased another jar to store away

~*Item reviewed purchased by me*~

Update on my Novalash extensions by Lolita

Remember my earlier post (http://lipglossfiend.wordpress.com/2012/11/29/revised-novalash-price-menu-by-lolita-beauty-studio-in-singapore/)?

Here’s how my teeny weeny eyes look after 2 weeks and 4 days of getting lashed.

 

My lash extensions are still looking pretty darn good and have survived a business trip. The right as a few tiny empty spaces but that’s owing to the natural lash falling out. From what I could see, in the span of 2 weeks and 4 days, I’ve had 7 natural lashes falling out from the right side and 2 unattached lash extensions. The left saw about 4 natural lashes falling out and 1 unattached lash extension. A decent record, I must say