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There are a myriad of ways to remove makeup before the usual facial wash/soap. There's the popular micellar water/cleansing water/cleansing lotion that you use a cotton pad/ball with, the lazy-girls' best friend — cleansing wipe, the cleansing cream, the cleansing gel-wash hybrid and the cleansing oil.

Out of all these, my favorites are the gel wash (absolute favorite is the ZA one) cleansing cream with a cleansing wipe and cleansing oil.

I got to try the pretty affordable cleansing oil by Cèleteque from last July's BDJ Box. I say affordable because it's just Php 199 but you only get 50 ml and that's my main gripe about this product.

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Experience

It completely removes light makeup on my face (light BB, blush, powder and eyebrow product) with about 5 ml of oil. For more heavy duty bases (heavy foundation, eyebrow, powder, mascara, blush, contour, highlight etc.) I have to use a lot to the point of my face almost dripping massage through then leave it in for a few seconds more than usual. Very minimal traces of makeup will be left after I cleanse with my usual face wash.

As for waterproof mascara, a separate mascara remover should be used as even after toner I'd still have tiny specks of (washable) mascara left.

Yes you will have cloudy vision if it gets in your eyes which is the case with most oil removers. As for the scent, fragrance is listed in the ingredient break-down, but I find no discernable scent from it.


Thoughts

I do like the oil itself. I do. But holy crap this little bottle only lasted a little over a month. And I don't even wear makeup everyday. If you calculate it Php 200/50 ml (Php 400/100ml) is not as affordable as it seems because I use a lot of oil just to completely remove my most minimal (in terms of product quantity) of makeup looks.

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Another reason why I won't repurchase is because it's a screw-top lid. I'd much rather have a pump for ease of use and should I need an additional amount to what I already applied [bottle slips and becomes grimy if I grab it with my already oiled up hands].

It's a good travelling buddy because of the size but in terms of my personal needs it's a no-go.

Have you tried this one? Or any other cleansing oils that you don't like/like?


xx,
CJ


PS. Currently using Biore cleansing oil and I love the smell!



The Cult Favorite

Every beauty enthusiast, blogger, vlogger and hoarder knows that Benefit is one of the best brands in terms of packaging and marketing. Not a lot of people like everything Benefit rolls out [foundations aren't anything special and some of the items are too overpriced for how mediocre they perform. Kits with foundation and powder included don't have the best shade range and aren't customizable.*].
* via Makeup Alley
But I've read a lot of great things about the They're Real. Of course littered with the positives are the negatives but the good outweigh the bad according to the general consensus.




The Brush

One of the main selling points of this mascara is the unusual wand. It's a rubber/silicone wand similar to The Rocket Mascara (here) but with the addition of a minesweeper (remember that game?) looking ball at the top.

While I think that the ball helps in coating the inner and outer ends of the eyelashes [also helps in separating lashes] it's quite tricky to use the "normal" brush side of the wand for the lower lashes. And if I do attempt to use the ball side for bottom lash application I risk poking my eye and/or getting mascara everywhere which I absolutely try to avoid because...





The Formula

This wet/creamy mascara is touted as being a semi-waterproof mascara but it's as hard to remove as a waterproof one. Scratch that. It's a pain to remove. I need to use olive oil after my cream cleanser. Or the Maybelline eye makeup remover after my cream cleanser. I still find remains on my cotton pad soaked with toner.
Other than that, it lengthens and volumizes really well despite being a wet mascara. I can also attest to the "saw visible lift" claim on the box, but I wouldn't say it "curled" my lashes sans curler.
One coat yields a satisfactory look in my opinion. I can definitely build it up to crazy-spidery-fake-lashes easily. Drying time is shorter if in front of a fan or in an air conditioned room. I would say without the fan or ac it's fully dry within 2-3 minutes. [The Philippines is a humid country.]





By one generous coat I mean I put a thick glop on and brushed it through several times.


This is basically my everyday / Go anywhere / 5 minute / I don't want to think too much / Who am I trying to impress makeup look.
I believe the mascara retails for around Php 1200 here. About USD $2 more expensive compared to the Sephora US price.
Final thoughts?

Despite liking the outcome I honestly wouldn't shell out USD $46 on a product with so short a shelf-life. It doesn't seem logical to me. Plus the wand is too gimmicky more than it is functional. The formula is more of love-hate. I love the effect and volume but it's so hard to take off.


xx,
CJ



PS. Drugstore mascaras rule...but if you have high end recommendations let me know. I'll keep my eyes peeled for it. :)

PPS. I got this sample in one of the BDJ subscription boxes.

PPPS. I didn't mention that the rest of the images after the pic with the generous coat I have two coats of mascara on.


EDIT : It smudges and transfers by the end of the day. And I don't have oily lids. I find it weird that a hard-to-remove mascara still smudges and transfers...

YouTube : https://www.youtube.com/user/BenefitCosmeticsPH
Facebook : https://www.facebook.com/benefitcosmeticsphilippines
Instagram : https://instagram.com/benefitbeautyph
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Everyone was talking about this mascara when it first came out. Initially I wasn't at all intrigued since I thought the brush looked a little too fat for me especially since I have sparse lashes. But seeing as it's still being talked about even now says something.

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I got it and like I initially thought the brush was a little big for my taste but it's not bad at all and it doesn't take away from the efficacy of the formula, even if I did get the non-waterproof version.

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FORMULA & THE WAND

I generally look for dry mascaras. I feel like they cling to sparse lashes better and they're easier to build-up. (Trade-off would be a shorter lifespan). This particular mascara's formula is creamy and a little thick. I find that it still builds-up quite well. My curl also holds even if it's not waterproof. (Waterproof mascaras tend to hold a curl better.). Although I wouldn't use this when I have to do something involving water or crying. It's water-resistant [on me — I don't have oily lids.] but once I touch it when it's wet it smudges.

The wand is a cone shaped silicone rubber with short bristles. I like that it has short bristles I just really really wish the wand was thinner and/or hugs the eye better.

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Bushy eyebrows aside, I like this much better than the Wet N Wild mascara I reviewed here. While I still wish the wand could be smaller it's not unusable. It deposits the mascara well enough. I can easily build up the volume from hey-I-have-naturally-thick-lashes to clump-master and I've no problem with removal. I hate hard to remove mascaras.


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*smudge-proof if dry.
*lashes become a little "crunchy" too [like any other mascara to be honest].


REPURCHASE?

Maybelline [in my opinion] is one of the drugstore brands that make good mascaras. While I can't find any "real" cons despite not loving the wand I wouldn't pick this up again any time soon solely because it didn't WOW me.

I still would recommend this to anyone who wants to change up their current mascara or is looking for some decent length and volume. It's definitely not revolutionary but like I said it's a pretty good one.


xx,
CJ


PS. Next mascara review is from Benefit!


Price : Around Php 399+ when I got it.
Website : http://www.maybelline.com.ph/
Facebook : https://www.facebook.com/maybellinephilippines
It's definitely been a while since I've posted a makeup review. Or at least it feels like it's been a while.

Wet n wild megaplump waterproof mascara review



Yay for mascaras.

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BRUSH / WAND

It has the typical type of bristles a mascara generally has. The size isn't overly small nor is it super big so it's actually the perfect size for my eyes. In comparison, Maybelline's The Rocket mascara's wand is way too big for my eye. If you have small eyes with short lashes this is has a pretty perfect size and thickness.

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USAGE / FORMULA

The formula is black, very watery and light. It's barely picked up by the wand. One coat yields a very very very natural lash look and not in the way some would like. It's as if you haven't put mascara on in the first place. It's that natural.

Two coats looks a lot better and looks like what other mascaras would be producing after one coat. It separates well because of its thin formula. Though said formula doesn't give much length or the advertised "plumping" action I was anticipating.

The good news is that it's water resistant/proof. So that's another pro. It's not really advertised as being smudge-proof (it flakes a bit over time) but I figured I'd put it out there. When it dries though you can't build it up anymore, so if you want more volume coat it again before it dries.

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THOUGHTS

I would give this one a big pass to anyone looking for cheap mascaras. There are better ones out there (Maybelline, L'Oreal, Shawill, Jordana and [even] Nichido for starters).

Have you tried this mascara? Or any Wet N Wild mascaras in general?


xx,
CJ

PS. Good thing I got this as a gift, I'd be a little upset to spend more than Php 200 on a dud. :)
PPS. Hover over my pictures to see the hidden messages.


Price : Around Php 250 - Php 299 (Instagram and Facebook stores might sell this cheaper)
Zalora : http://www.zalora.com.ph/wet-n-wild/
Lazada : http://www.lazada.com.ph/wet-n-wild/
frommanilawithlove_lifestyle_and_beauty_blog_in_manila_philippines








READING
A lot of Hello Giggles' articles, Buzz Feed, Up Worthy and Refinery29 again linked from Facebook. I always read their stuff but I just recently realized that a lot of what I read since time immemorial were from these particular sites.

I used to read a lot of Thought Catalog but it got a bit too "whiney" for my taste.

WATCHING
THIS.

Spoiler : Yes. She never gets an actual answer. She's so much better off without him but that doesn't make what they had any less real.

LISTENING TO

Honestly, why are people hating on him still? He was a douche. But we have to realize that he was young, he's got a ton of money and he was thrust into the limelight at a very very young age. People seem to forget that he's actually very talented. I just like that he's doing music still and it's very... now.

I like it. Especially the beat.

THINKING
About volunteering. I already submitted the forms so I wouldn't have to think too much over it (and/or chicken out while thinking).

FEELING
Light. I just submitted updates to a project I'm doing for a client and it was stressing me out the past few weeks because I was continuously putting-off doing it. That and I wasn't excited about the project. What can I say I'm very idealistic particular.

WANTING
A shit load of money to fund my early retirement to the beach/forest.

NEEDING
Or feeling the need to watch Hoarders. It's sad, scary and all too real. But I can't help watching their conclusion.

WISHING
To finally [finish the project so can get the moneyz] to book the ticket to get me to the beach where my friend's at.



xx,
CJ