Migranes and pixlromatic

Sasa Haul

Here are some of the contents of my haul from sasa.com that I received last week.

Well I actually I bought multiple of all the items posted... as well as lip balms and Rohto eye drops which I've already misplaced! In the picture though are: Skinlite hair pack (mask as thick as toothpaste and an essence cap. Like the Japanese essential hair care brand smells indulgently of honey. Next are four Laniege water sleeping packs. In the UK where you get generous sample packs form brands like Clinique when you buy two or more products, HK actually sell these samples individually. I bought four as it equated to the full size jar but I saved a couple of quid. A single foam hair curler (from a pack of 6) curls hair into lose japanese style curls without heat. CM papaya and tomato whitening gels, this is something I've never tried before but the texture is like a more fluid Clinique moisture surge (FYI, tomato smells horrible). I think the small green face masks are Cosline? whitening green tea fluid masks... I thought these were sheet masks :( Attirer cotton sheets/pads. This seems like a silly thing to export from abroad but I love asian cotton pads, they never flake and even the cheapest brands are soft and silky. Lastly there is a lifecella mask, which Sasa sent as a complimentary gift. All in all, this haul was a waste of money, I had spent a few weeks building up my basket to get free shipping. However when that date came, nearly half and the good stuff was removed due to no stock and I ended up purchasing all the filler items.

Here is a picture of Laneige sleeping pack. As you can see, its a milky translucent gel. It smells wonderful and works as an overnight moisturiser/mask which is to be washed off in the morning. Hydrates and plumps skin very well, yet is absorbed as soon as it touches the skin.

Missha PK05 nail polish. Milky, gel, coral.

And my favourite polish remover, Suki in rose. Smells wonderful from Sasa and retails at about £1.50. Hard to find on their website though.

She said beauty box

Here is a sum up of my overall experience with She said beauty monthly premium sample boxes. I have received all three boxes I subscribed too and overall I would rate the experience 8/10. However, under experiences, it's things like the expectation, the surprise etc. The products I received in the box, I would rate 5/10. The reason for this is due to the promise of premium samples not being delivered, I received things like cheap soap made in China, collection 2000 lip puffs,Kim Kardashian perfume samples and stingy amounts of sample sachets. Some of the more expensive products and full sized ones like Inka make up, didn't appeal to me. It didn't help that the colours I got were disgusting and unflattering. Having said all that, I understand that everything is random but I do feel that She said beauty being a new service doesn't have many good brands under their belt, hence the products are not as good as ones offered by Glossybox. I've barely even tried any of the samples I got from She said beauty; they're all still in their boxes stacked on my windowsill. :/ My Glossybox subscription will continue. Lasts months box was full of full sized delights and with their birthday coming up, I can't wait for more and hopefully bonus surprises!!!

Quick Reviews

I'm back at home from uni and have decided to do some quick reviews of the products I have back in my room and also a few which I have recently purchased. Lighting has been very poor due to my room being back facing and also the heavy amount of clouds in the sky, so I tried to spruce them up with some photoshop.. Did I fail?? haha.

So what's up first. Two Maybelline products, Illegal lengths (fiber extension) mascara and the Dream fresh BB cream.



The mascara, as its description has little fibers which are meant to brush on to the end of the lashes, creating lengths. There are loads of these type mascaras in Asia, having tried more than a few, I don't feel this product matches some of the standards. There are little fibers in the formula, so it doesn't create the overall desired outcome. However, this may be because it's new and needs to dry up a bit. Having said that, thumbs up to Maybelline, it does a good job of volume and hold and also comes in a waterproof formula, which is rare in the UK for a new release.
On to the BB cream. to my knowledge, they come in four shades, one of which is called 'universal glow' which I presume is a tanning type product. It boasts 8 benefits, the most important one being SPF30 and is oil free. The colours I tested come in a yellow based formula, thumbs up for me! I saw Maybelline's BB cream last year in Hong Kong but decided against it because of the ashy colours, the UK versions are more suited for me. I feel the only pro for me is the SPF, the cons are that its extremely shimmery and has very light coverage, thus, why I'm going to reserve this product as a primer. Another con and this maybe just for me, is that although it states 30ml (standard amount of product for a foundation) when I opened it, about 50% was air in the tube, so really only 15/20mls at most.

Next up, L'oreal color riche polish in 305 and total nail RX, build me up, nail hardener.



I was disappointed with the polish, it does give an amazing shine but only with two thick coats, its also a bit streaky. Another fail, is the bottle, a perfect 5ml size to travel with, especially compared to Revlon's but the long neck of the bottle makes painting nails a little more difficult than normal.
The Total nail RX, I bought for only £1! from Boots clearance sale. It does an amazing job too. Recently my nails have been splitting (too much washing up.. note to self, most stop!) but this product has definitely made a difference, especially to polish staying power. I have only tried it with Mavala varnsihes though, which themselves are really good, so we shall see how it fairs up with L'oreal color riche. This nail hardener is brilliant especially compared to the more costly Orly one I have been using.

Mascara review

Mascara is one of the most essential parts of my make up routine. Some people have flawless skin that doesn't need to be enhanced by foundation. Some people have amazing brows which doesn't need any penciling... Some people have amazing eyelashes... which can always be enhanced by mascara. MASCARA IS ABSOLUTE LOVE! It's essential, unlike blush and foundation which have other meanings, mascara has one meaning and it's so special and universal, it's defined in the dictionary... Come on, you wouldn't find 'brow pencil' in there would you?!?

Lets start with my preferences. I have classic oriental lashes, little of them and short. So, when I look for a mascara, I want volume and length, hold, absolutely no smudging or budging. A lot to ask right? AS, you will notice, all my mascara is waterproof. Waterproof mascara have more hold (wax), so it will hold a curl better than a washable formula. If a new mascara with amazing claims come onto the market, I will not buy it until a waterproof formula comes out.

Maybelline lash stilleto
Although, this is the only maybelline product I feature, I LOVE nearly all the maybelline mascaras I have purchased (I hate one by one). This is my favourite one because the brush is thin and I can zig zag through my lashes without printing it on my eyelid. Like with all mascaras, its a bit watery for my liking but after a good few uses, the formula will start to thicken and give lots of volume.

Eyeko Skinny mascara
This is a cult product and I haven't a clue why. The wand gets so much product on it, I end up with three eyelashes. The end.

Suki 3D
This was purchased in Hong Kong for the equivalent of five English pounds. The formula is a gel type consistency and the wand is plastic, with two types of combs on either side. Its the classic Japanese type formula, where it's water poof but can be removed with hot water, very practical!! The mascara performs only adequately for me, I get separation but little length or volume.

Lavshuca curl mascara
Again purchased in Hong Kong for around £10. Its got the same wand as Maybelline lash discovery (Discontinued US product) whereas that one was great for building volume, this mascara performs poorly. Very disappointed and only exists in my current collection because the packaging is rather pretty.

Maxfactor 2000 calorie
Again, rather disappointing. Like Benefit Bad Gal, this waterproof formula has a different wand to the washable formula. Instead of the nice thick fuzzy wand, you get a bog standard one like how you may expect from a £3 mascara. The wand on the original washable formula is what made lashes boom with volume, as it coated and coated every lash. The formula on this waterproof mascara is also not as thick and creamy as the washable one.

Loreal lash architect
Lovely thick formula, doesn't require lashes to be curled, creates loads of volume however I can only really have 3 coats before it starts getting clumpy. It also smudges a hellalot even though its supposedly waterproof...

Loreal volume million lashes
I hate plastic wands but thought I would give this a try. Its ok for definiton thanks to the tube removing excess product but volume? not quite so much. However it does layer very well, so you can coat until your heart desires.

Clinique high impact
Remember this mascara when it launched? It claimed you did not need to use an eyelash curler. Wrong!! its watery, so tiny straight lashes like mine, you definitely do! The curved brush also doesn't perform great as it's hard to get the lashes on the inner and outer of the eye without poking yourself. Again, has the Japanese type formula, which can be removed with warm water.

Clinique lash building primer
It doesn't really do anything...

Some past mascaras which I absolutely loved but aren't featured in my collection are:
Maybelline falsies
Maybelline collosal
Canmake fur mascara

I'm looking forward for the Maybelline illegal length fibre mascara to hit the UK!

A scent worth a million

From left to right: Issey Miyake, Stella McCartney, Gucci Envy Me, Pacco Roabanne Lady Million, Juicy Couture, Victor & Rolf Flowerbomb, Chloe, Gucci Flora, Dior J'adore, Agent Provocateur, Agent Provocateur Maitresse.

She said beauty box

I was very pleased to come home from uni today, to see that my beauty box has arrived early! She said beauty is the newest beauty box and I signed up for 2 reasons.

One. being a new beauty box, its launch product samples have to be good in order to keep subscribers but also to gain new ones (thank god my degree is useful!)

Two. SSB is £1 less than its competitors (i.e. Glossy box) also, it has great deals, first box for around £7 or subsribe for 3 months etc for x amount off.

So lets see what I got!!


Orly nail polish in ancient jade... The better of the two colours. The other one I could have got was black.
A Orly nail file.
We are faux eyelashes.
Collection 2000 cream puff gloss.
A trio sample of Aveda hair products (smooth infusion)
A sample of comfort zone good night cream and night complex
And a bonus Jing flowering tea. One of those flower teas that open up in a clear glass from Pho.

Box is worth: £28 (there abouts based on online prices and prices given)

Beautifully packaged like all beauty boxes

Magnetised flap lip box, so useful and beautiful to keep jewellery in.

The sticker at the front says "...Hope you love your beauty box"
And I do! very much so.