My Women Stuff | Malaysia beauty blog by Paris B

The new IT shoe – Christian Louboutin Fox Trot

June 20, 2007 Paris B Leave a Comment

Can you imagine yourself walking in 4 3/4 inch heels? Well, if you are a slave to shoe fashion then better start practicing now for the latest IT shoe is none other than the Christian Louboutin Fox Trot.

Picture courtesy of Life & Style. Please click to enlarge

It looks quite innocuous actually. Its a basic peeptoe slingback design, but this shoe, named after the dance, has been spotted on the feet of many A-list celebrities. At a whopping $710 a pop, you can bet it’d better be worth it!

But what’s making it so irresistable other than the price and glamour attached? Its leg lengthening qualities. You see, the higher the heels you wear, the more your feet and legs have to stretch to accomodate it. It throws your back out of whack though, so don’t make it a habit to wear very high heels for long periods of time.When you get older, you’ll suffer for it with back and knee pains.

If the $710 price tag gets to you (as it does me) do check out some cheaper options. Peeptoes are always in for summer and they look elegant. It must be that little bit of toe peeping out that gets people all excited. Its like showing off cleavage on your foot. But watch the height. No point suffering for the sake of fashion eh?

Review: Makeup: Maybelline Dream Mousse Blush

June 20, 2007 Paris B 2 Comments

I read a lot of good reviews about this mousse blush before it came into Malaysia and managed to get my hands on it to try.

This is a mousse based blush, similar to that of Stila’s mousse blushes. It comes in a heavy glass pot with the colour of the cap representing the colour of the blush inside. Its too bulky and heavy to travel with and the contents can shift in transit. There are many colours available overseas, but when I checked at Guardian here, we have only about 4 colours available.

This mousse blush is not to be confused with the Dream Matte Mousse foundation also by Maybelline. The texture and concept is the same, but this blush is not matt. The colours have some slight shimmer to them which is useful in a blush to add texture.

When you open the pot, you’ll find the coloured mousse inside. It feels soft and springy to the touch – rather like that of a sponge cake. You tap your finger on the blush and then apply to your cheeks as you would a cream blush.

As with all cream blushes, it should go on AFTER liquid foundation and BEFORE powder foundation. However, I find that it lasts a bit better if I apply it after applying my powder foundation. Otherwise, it fades pretty quickly throughout the day.

I had 3 colours previously – Soft Plum, Pink Frosting and Whipped Strawberries. I’m of relatively fair skin but Pink Frosting didn’t show up on me at all! All I got was shimmer. So I got rid of it. Soft Plum turned up too berry so I looked rather unnatural. My favourite of all was Whipped Strawberries – a bright fuschia in the pot but a pretty pink on the cheeks.

I went to check at Guardian for availability and saw they had Peach Satin – a pretty peach with shimmer in the pot, which essentially went on my skin pure shimmer with no colour, Soft Plum – plum shade, Berries – berry shade and Pink Marshmallow – sweet pink with shimmer that didn’t show up.

I asked if they were bringing in Whipped Strawberries, a colour I think would fit any girl, its so sweet on!, but all I got was a blank stare and the official spiel that what I saw was all they had. Sigh…. don’t these sales assistants know that its a much bigger world out there?!

I have no quarrel with the texture but it goes on very sheer. Its good so you don’t overdo it and you can layer it on, but if you have darker skin, I’d just skip this, to be honest.

They were retailing at RM29.90 in Guardian and Watsons and I think it might be RM32 now but I’m not quite sure.

Pros: Cheap, easy to use

Cons: Limited colours here, not long-lasting, doesn’t show up well, bulky packaging

[rating:3/5]

Review: Makeup: Mavala Waterproof Mascara

June 19, 2007 Paris B 2 Comments

I’d heard some good things about Mavala’s mascara, so the next time I was going by a Sasa store, I popped in and picked one up in Black. It comes in a rather large bottle, with a slim long silver cap. For now I’ve only ever seen it at Sasa stores.

What I liked first off about this mascara is its brush. Its a curved brush but I’m a novice with mascara, so I wasn’t quite sure how to use it. That’s not what I like about it. What I like is that the brush head is small and bristles on the brush are very small. I have sparse, short lashes, so this was great for me, as it could grab onto each lash to coat it with the mascara.

Its supposed to be enriched with protein to help protect your lashes from breaking. I found that it did make my lashes look longer and enhanced my eyes.

However, the bad news is that despite its claims of being waterproof, it smudged on me. I don’t quite understand why it smudged. I did not get my eyes wet at all the whole day, yet towards the end of the day, I found that the bottom lid was dark. As the mascara is the only new thing I’ve added into my routine, it had to be it. I even tested it on a few days just to be sure, but after my colleague repeatedly warned me of my mascara running and of me looking like a panda, I’ve given up on it. However, whatever is left on my lashes can be hard to remove with my eye makeup remover. So its a bit of a contradiction there.

Mavala mascaras retail for about RM27 or so at Sasa stores. They have lots of colours available, if you like colour on your lashes. So far, only Lancome Flextencils is working best for me!

Pros: Small curved brush is great for short lashes, large tube

Cons: Ran on me despite it being waterproof

[rating:2/5]

I did not think much of the Clarks warehouse sale

June 17, 2007 Paris B 3 Comments

There. I’ve said it.

I read about the Clarks warehouse clearance sale in the newspapers and online. I’d been to the one last year, which was held at the same place i.e. Corus Hotel in the KL city centre. Having a clearance sale in a hotel is always a good idea because its cool but parking is always hell. This year, they advised shoppers to park at Avenue K next door, because I suppose to hotel just could not accomodate the shoppers AND hotel guests who couldn’t have been very pleased to find so many people trooping around the hotel, clogging up the entrance and car parks.

Last year, I picked up some deals, I felt. I got a pair of flats at about RM100 and a pair of black court shoes (serviceable if a tad small) at RM120. I’d seen similar pairs in the retail stores so I knew the prices. I hoped to pick up the same bargains this year. However, I found this year, that the prices were higher.

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