Posts Tagged ‘Makeup Tutorial’

17
Jun
2010

Sponsored Review

My friends have always commented how they like my eyeshadow and they’ve asked countless times how I do it. Or if they’re new to makeup, they ask me how to do makeup. In fact, I still owe some of my friends makeup lessons on how to apply eye makeup. Oops.

Being a beauty blog, it seems inevitable that makeup tutorial posts would feature in my content. But it can be time consuming to sort though the numerous photos and edit them, especially when it comes to an eyeshadow post with so many steps. Video tutorials always seemed a much better way of teaching how to do makeup. I, however, never got about to doing any because I never had the right equipment.

The Olympus PEN, also known as the Olympus EP1, thus, could not have come at a better time. It doesnt matter whether you call it a mini DSLR, compact DSLR or pocket DSLR because this little beauty comes packed with amazing functions despite having the smallest overall size (including lens) in the market. Because it’s so easy to carry around, I just had to bring it to New York with me. It was so convenient to carry. But dont look down on its size, the camera comes with your regular DSLR functions: controlling shutter speed, aperture, ISO, AND added cool features like the ART mode.

New York never looked so different. Six ART modes allow you to create cool effects on your photos without having to go through Photoshop at all. No time to edit your photos? The Olympus EP1 does it right in the camera itself! The different modes accentuate various things in your photos. For instance, the pop art filter enhances colours and would be great for enhancing the colours of eyeshadow too.

Futhermore, the EP1 shoots in HIGH DEFINITION and is perfect for making makeup video tutorials. But dont take my word for it, watch the HD video I made myself to see what I mean. For everyone who’s always wondered how to do eye shadow, you’ll get your questions answered today. I finally made a video to show you how I do it in my very first makeup video tutorial!

Dont you just love the colours of the video? Again, I didnt have to edit any of it. Hahaha. The same ART functions available in the still photo mode can also be applied to the video mode. HOW AWESOME IS THAT! Now you can make your very own arty film without post processing just by using any of these modes in your home video. I personally love Art 2 (Soft focus) because it makes everything so dreamy! Perfect for cam-whoring after you finish your makeup.

Art 6 (Pinhole), on the other hand, makes everything so vintage and quaint.

So you think this camera is cool with the HD video recording and 6 different ART modes? Well, the E-portrait function in the Scene selection just puts the cherry on top of the cake. I swear this camera has Photoshop in-built into it.

The E-portrait function eliminates blemishes from skin so complexion is flawless. The smoothing is even and subtle so you look naturally gorgeous in every photo. You dont have to lift a single finger to achieve a perfect complexion. Well, except maybe a finger to press the shutter on the camera of course.

With its toy camera compact size, white metal body, faux leather skinning, this mini DSLR is stylish and a perfect accessory for shutterbugs to carry about to capture all your precious moments.

But this is not all talk and no action, come 26th June 2010 Saturday 2pm – 3.30pm at Vivo City, I will personally be giving a mini guided tour on how the Olympus EP1 works (and possibly some makeup tips as well). You, of course, just have to be present for this awesome tour! You know it’s going to be a fun-filled day. And to make things even juicer for you, when you get home and blog about how much fun you had, you might actually win a brand new Olympus FE4030 digital camera! The most exciting post sent with their name, contact number, email address and blog URL to Olympus@nuffnang.com will stand a chance to own this 14 MEGAPIXEL camera.

Dont thank me, dont thank me. It’s a great opportunity I had to share. But if you really want to thank me (and you totally should because of my awesome video. HAHA), I need your help in voting my video as the best video on this site (VOTE HERE). I need your encouragement and words clicks of approval so I will make more makeup videos next time. But if cool new videos in the future are not enough, maybe a brand new camera will entice you to vote. One lucky voter wins the FE4030 camera just by voting for your favourite video! So what say you? Perhaps, if you voted for me and you won, I’ll teach you how to make makeup tutorials with your brand new camera. Hahahaha.

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17
Jun
2010

I have this nasty little habit when I go mascara shopping: I tend to pick up several mascaras at once and store them somewhere for a couple a months before I get to opening any one of them. Call me a mascara hoarder, but even when I got the Maybelline Colossal Volume Express mascara waaaaayyyy before it hit the shores of Singapore as the Maybelline Magnum Mascara, it took me about 8 months later before the mascara got to see daylight. LOL.

Please dont ask me why that happens. But perhaps it’s just knowing that after I’ve found the best mascara that I dub the holy grail of mascaras, nothing else comes close. Except maybe its sister mascara with an additional pulse.

Still, I’m always on the look out for new mascaras that promise to curl, lengthen and volumise your lashes. So when I walked into Duane Reade, the local drugstore, the first night here in New York, I had a bimbogasm when I saw the shelves of makeup. I picked out a whole bunch of mascaras, but decided I only have so many lashes that I can coat with mascara. So those we couldnt get back home in Singapore were the ones I landed up with.

Clockwise from top:
- Covergirl Lash Blast Luxe mega volume shimmering mascara
- Covergirl Exact Highlights eye brightening mascara
- Maybelline Define-a-lash Volume mascara
- Rimmel Glam Eyes Lash Flirt mascara
- Maybelline Pulse Perfection Vibrating mascara (review here)
- Maybelline Define-a-lash Lengthening mascara (review here)

Me picking up the same two mascaras time and time again is probably the best testament to how amazing I think they are. As for the rest, I promise I will get a review up for each of them within the next….. 3 months maybe? Haha. Or it might be better if you told me which one you’d like to see a review on and I’d get started on that pronto.

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15
Jun
2010

You must already know that Singapore has its very own Sephora. Two in fact. But I’ve always lamented on the lack of cool brands they carry. After just spending two days in the beauty department of various department stores and in Sephora right here in New York itself, I realise I get turned on excited by brands such as Urban Decay, Smashbox, NARS, DuWop and Buxom. Being such a beauty junkie, Sephora was naturally the first store I wanted to visit.

The very first Sephora I stepped into here in New York was located near the financial district Wall Street. I saw the store, squealed my head off and rushed to take a photo from across the road. Going inside was like dying and going to beauty heaven. It wasnt one of the largest Sephoras, but it still held all the coveted brands we dont get back in Singapore. It was where all the cool brands were and at that point, the long flight we had to sit through was well worth it.

The shop was rather crowded compared to the deserted streets outside. I walked inside and had to keep my grabby little hands to myself. It wouldnt be wise of me to spend my entire budget on makeup stuff on my very first day in the City now would it? I thus had to distract myself by getting trigger happy.

Here are some of the brands that we dont have back home.

They, of course, stock some of the same brands we have here in our Sephora, but carry a much wider range of products. I havent done any serious damage in Sephora as yet. But I did get myself Super Orgasm from NARS to see how different it is from its sister blush Orgasm. I foresee many more ventures into Sephora these coming few days. Haha. In fact, there’s another one along 5th Avenue near Empire State Building.

Sephora is located in many places in New York City, but the ones I’ve been to are at:
150 Broadway
New York, NY 10038-4381
Monday – Friday: 8 am – 8 pm
Saturday: 11 am – 7 pm
Sunday: 12 pm – 6 pm

597 5th Avenue
New York, NY 10017
On 5th Avenue, between East 48th & 49th Streets
Monday – Saturday: 10 am – 8 pm
Sunday: 11 am – 7 pm

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8
Jun
2010

First there was M.A.C and Barbie, then they teamed up with Hello Kitty. Now, according to a little bird, M.A.C is working with Disney for a second time to feature 4 Disney Villains in a new collection aptly named the MAC Disney Venomous Villains Collection!

After much investigation and browsing through various sources, lipstick, powder, lip gloss and blush will be in this collection. Have a look at the video and guess who the Disney Villains will be!

Did you see any familiar characters? I think I spotted Cruella DeVil from 101 Dalmatians and the Evil Queen from Snow White. Oohhh.. This is all too deliciously devious. I can already imagine the colors and the bright beautiful packaging. Cruella’s monochromatic hair and red lips are sure to inspire some shades of lippie if not some already funky hair dos. I wonder if the Queen of Hearts from Alice in Wonderland will make an appearance. I quite like the powerful red/black combination of her dress.

The collection is said to debut late September at MAC locations worldwide.

Who would YOU like to see featured in 4 Disney Venomous Villains collection?

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1
Jun
2010

With the beginning of a new month, I can safely tell you that beginnings are just as difficult as endings. A beginning always holds uncertainty; a beginning is always full of pebbles along the way; a beginning is always where you start mucking about before you finally find what works for you. As much as you always plan for something, the unexpected never fails to happen and it’s these unexpected surprises that you have to deal with that make a simple beginning challenging yet so very exciting.

It is with the beginning of dweam.com as a Singapore Beauty Blog that I say goodbye to my previous direction. It is today I welcome a new beauty direction in my blog.

I’ve always toyed with the idea of starting a full fledged beauty blog. I can tell you it was difficult to do so. The beginning is always tough. I never thought that I was qualified to do so despite spending all my years in University on stage dancing; never thought that all the time I spent in front of the camera and on the runway was enough for me to tell anyone how to do their makeup. In fact, why would they listen to an ugly duckling like me?


Can you guess which one is me? Hahaha. Fresh faced into Uni. Taken when I was in Year 1 in 2004.

But maybe it was really when I finally ventured into the pageantry circuit and had to “fend for myself” that I finally got the courage to start. Afterall it was then that I had the most “drastic” changes in terms of how I looked. Hahaha. No, it was not plastic, but merely a refining of the basic techniques I already had. With this experience in dance, modeling and pageantry, yes, I’ve decided to give myself the go ahead. That’s not to say, up to this point, my beauty tutorials, makeup reviews and DIYs come from professional backgrounds. They are simply genuine reflections of what I do, use, experience and feel for the products on a regular basis.


Fast forward 4 years later, 2008.

However, beauty, to me, is not merely about who has the biggest eyes, the fullest lips, using the best makeup or having the most extensive number of products. I have to say that coming from a Psychology background (oh yes, I’m trained in Psychology. Let me read your mind now) that beauty to me is really just a mental state. I fully believe that we can and all should dream of the beautiful to be truly outstanding. My one month in the Philippines representing Singapore as Miss Earth also taught me that exact same thing. It wasn’t the girl who had the flashiest clothes, biggest eyes or the best hair that eventually won the crown. It was the girl who could compose herself well in times of duress that finally got crowned Queen. It was her who could smile despite not having things go her way. It was her who was a friend to all. Despite landing only Top 16, I have to admit, I learnt a lot during that trip to last me a lifetime.

Being beautiful is an art, but more importantly, being beautiful is a holistic development. As I share with you what makes me beautiful outside and in through my DIYs, reviews, tutorials, outfit posts, the not-so-newly conceived SneakerSunday and the occasional lifestyle posts, I hope new readers and potential followers will take my hand (albeit a virtual one) and join me in my beauty journey. For those who have been following me for a long time, I thank you for your unfailing support. There are so many people I have to thank, because without them dweam.com would not be where it is now. But, I will leave that for another day.

As an ending note, my dream for this blog is to inspire you, my reader, to become more beautiful inside and out as you explore uncharted territories with me, in this new chapter of dweam.


2010. Photo credits: Brad Lau

This is me. This is dweam now.

Not everyone can be a beauty queen, but everyone can be beautiful.

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28
May
2010

I’m sure many die-hard mascara fans would have already heard of the big name vibrating mascaras: Lancome Oscillation Vibrating mascara and the Estee Lauder TurboLash All Effects Motion mascara. But did you know that drugstore brand Maybelline, for a third of the price, has it’s own affordable version of the vibrating mascara? Yes, the Maybelline Define-a-Lash Pulse Perfection mascara is the powerful sister mascara of the Define-a-Lash series mascaras that knows how to give your lashes a good time.

When I crowned the Maybelline Define-a-Lash Lengthening mascara my all-time favourite mascara, I figured the vibrating version would probably be as just good, or possibly even better due to the 7000 vibrations per minute wand. The vibrating wand does what no hand can do.

Now girls, listen up. THIS is the secret weapon I use to apply mascara to my bottom lashes. Using only the tip of the vibrating wand, gently press it to your bottom lashes and press the on button. Your job is to wait and let the wand work its magic on your lashes. The wand does all that zig-zag work for you lengthening, separating and voluminizing your lashes in one simple sweep.

This mascara wasn’t previously available in Singapore (I had to order mine from drugstore.com) but a limited edition one is now retailing in all good department stores and Watsons outlets for SGD$29.90.

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