december favourites 2015.

29.12.15

December was quite the month for me - I was sick (again!) for the first couple weeks and then I had the time of my life when some of my favourite people made it to Taiwan for the pre-holiday season. The holidays itself was relatively settled down as there isn't a big festive spirit on this Eastern Island, but I still got a lot of quality time with some of my closest friends. 

I wasn't sure if I was going to do this post after doing my annual favourites, but there have been some exciting bits that I've thrown into rotation the past month. So I've decided to do a quick roundup of my favourite products from the past 31 days. 

Winter isn't as lacklustre here in Taiwan as it is in London, but I've still been all over the highlighting trend to add some glow to the face. I was gifted the NARS Illuminator (£23) in Copacabana by my lovely Korean friend as she apparently thought 'the colour was pretty' and that I 'would know how to use something like that'. I am forever in awe of her thought process but I'm not complaining here. Anywho. I love the soft halo glow this peachy pink highlighter gives when used under foundation, or mixed in with a matte base. It's also gorgeous when applied over foundation. I also love the tube packaging - much more convenient than my potted cream highlighters. 

I don't think I've spoken about the Essence Lash Princess Mascara ($4.99) as much as it deserves on the blog. This has been pretty much the only mascara I've been using the past 2.5 months. It's a curved bristle brush with a slightly drier formula that clings to the lashes exceptionally well. This inexpensive mascara really bulks up the lashes and doesn't smudge throughout the day - even if it is depressingly drizzly and humid outside. 

I've been reaching for my eyeliners again and this time around it's the banila co Triple Wonder Auto Gel Liner in Deep Brown. This is the first makeup product I've tried from this Korean brand (also gifted to me by my awesome friend that needs to stop giving me things) and I'm intrigued by what else this brand can offer. I'm not sure what the triple wonder is referring to but this is quite a wonderful liner - it literally does not smudge nor transfer throughout the day. I've worn this for up to 14 hours with slight fading as the only trace of time. I haven't exactly tried it on the waterline yet, but I have a feeling this will hold up. 

Of course, what would a favourites be without an excessive amount of lip products? I'm still not over the purple lip trend and my newest obsession comes in the form of MAC Lip Pencil (£12.50) in Heroine. I never quite understood why people liked to use lipliners until I tried out a MAC lip pencil. Nothing like the traditional wooden hard lip pencils, the MAC offerings are creamy and easy to apply. Heroine is currently the only one I own but I have a feeling that'll change. Anywho. Back to the actual product. Heroine is a straight up bright purple lipliner that is absolutely gorgeous. I like to wear this on its own on the days when I'm feeling particularly bold and crave for something different - it's also surprisingly wearable once you get used to not having the 'traditional' colours. But I also like wearing it under other lipsticks to boost up the purple - like MAC Up the Amp or MAC Flat Out Fabulous. It also works really well in adding a purple tinge to non-purple shades - such as MAC All Fired Up. It's a shade that looks like it can't do much, but it's actually quite versatile if you're one for bright and bold lips. 

Last but not least, I think I've finally found a liquid lipstick that I can wear on a day to day basis. Actually, I'm hesitating to call the NYX Soft Matte Lip Cream (£5.50) liquid lipsticks as they're more of a mousse-y texture. The texture makes it really easy to apply without feeling like you're a 3-year old let loose in a box of markers. I've been particularly loving the shades Zurich, a warm-toned natural pink with a tinge of peach, and Prague, a muted wine red (YUM WINE*....sorry.) They last for a good 5-6 hours without drying out the lips. They dry down to a matte finish after the first couple of seconds and there's absolutely no sign of transfer after that - my kinda lip product. I've heard that these don't hold up well to meals, but I've had noodles and sandwiches just fine. I'm supposing that this won't hold up to a good burger, pizza, and fried chicken session though. That said, if I know I'm going to have fried chicken and pizza, I probably wouldn't be applying lipstick in the first place. 

I've had quite the adventure in 2015 and I'm quite sad to wave goodbye to the past 12 months. I'd like to think that 2016 will be a blast though. What are some of the products that you've been enjoying in the last weeks of 2015? 
With Love, 
Daphne x


*it's currently 13:30 as I type this...I think wanting wine at this time of day is a slight problem. Welp!


Where to Buy in Taiwan: NARS - selected Sogo department stores; Essence - selected Watsons, essencetaiwan.com; MAC - selected department stores; NYX - beautyjoint 

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