Friends With Benefit

I got the heads up from JerineLay.com, so Imma spread the good word here too. ;) Benefit Cosmetics (USA) is offering free shipping WORLDWIDE if you purchase at least $115 worth of goods from them! With the low USD/MYR exchange rate, that's a mere RM345. Do you know how easy it is to achieve that? Hahaha... whenever I win stuff from Benefit and they are giving away "RM500 hampers", I know it's gonna be about 4 products. I got about RM500 worth of stuff from Parkson Pavilion a while back and it was just 4 items! Apparently, if you buy online, you save more money as the price on the website is much cheaper than what is being sold over the counter in Malaysia.

I was quite sad because they didn't have the stuff that I wanted to try out, namely :
a. Lust Dusters (shimmery eyeshadow, I find it akin to Everyday Minerals, so I wanna check 'em out!)
b. Touch Me... Then Try To Leave Me (a luxurious body moisturiser with cute packaging = thumbs up!)
c. Body So Fine another luxurious body moisturiser. But some reviews say that they have discontinued it, and repackaged it as "Take A Picture, It Lasts Longer".
d. Dear John ... apparently a great face moisturiser! Why don't they have this online! Is it also discontinued?

The Buh-Bye (aka sales!) section of the website was also disappointing - I generally don't buy a lot of lippies or lipglosses since I can't use finish what I *do* have. I also don't use eyebrow pencils - people who were once called "caterpillar brows" generally do not WANT to accentuate them in any way. But it doesn't matter, the point is not to get the stuff on sale, but that everything does seem to be "on sale" as the shipping is free, and as mentioned, you're paying less than if you buy it over the counter in Malaysia.

Let me share with you my Benefit haul through the years!

a. Lipscription
Contains two tubes - one is lip buffing beads and the other is a silky lip balm. Obviously, the lip buffing beads are to buff your lips, great for those with dry lips like mine. If it's all cracked up, best to buff with lipscription instead of peeling it on your own, unless you like bleeding wtf. I think the lip buffing beads aren't really that special. You could do the same with warm water and a soft towel (then again - I like it rough like that, hehe). However, the silky lip balm is a whole other story. It squeezes out like wax, and melts onto your lips easily and makes it oh-so-kissable. SERIOUSLY! And since I'm darn vain, I think this helps make my lips look 10% juicier. ^^

Then you put it on your lips and proceed "brushing" your lips with your finger! There's no smell (or if there is, it's very mild) and doesn't leave weird after taste whatsover. Quite fun, but pointless IMHO.

b. Boi-ing!
Touted to be industrial strength undereye circle concealer, but I didn't use it because when I first got this (as a prize), I didn't have such bad undercircles. After that, I kept thinking that the shade that they got for me was darker than my skintone (but actually it's quite a good match), so I ended buying ...

c. Erase Paste
Delicate under-circle concealer and also a concealer for other random imperfections you wish to hide. It doesn't only conceal - it brightens up! I remember being so amazed when the SA applied it on for me, and the difference between my eyes were amazing. Lemme show you :

Here's a picture of myself without any make-up on. Looks bad huh. Check out my eyebags! Lack of sleep, too much staring at the computer and lots of crying will do that to you.

I had to use flash to show you the difference, but somehow the flash makes it look like my eyebags are not as severe (compare this to above image). But you can see the difference la! In real life, I can really see a marked change, but somehow when I *don't* use flash, there's no difference. Hmmm...

Off topic, but remember the Neutrogena Blackhead Eliminating cleanser series I've been using? I change my mind! With religious application, it really works. You can see how clear my nose looks in the above picture! No pore strips needed (but I like pore strips...).

d. Brow-zings
How to pluck/shave your perfect brows and make them an arc above the rest. ;p Haven't used this either as I generally don't care about my brows. You're probably wondering then why do I have it... it's through contest winnings!

Thanks to hot Malaysian weather , the dark brown shade is kinda screwed up, though you can't see in this pic.

e. Dandelion
Lovely blush from Benefit, and their definite bestseller. I can definitely see why that is so - it's a very delicate pink color with small sparkles to give you a glowy, dewy look. Very youthful and suitable for my skintone. This makes me a fan of their "box o' powder" series, which is why I'm thinking of getting more from my online haul. Should I? Cos my Dandelion is not really used, and I have two full-size Everyday Minerals blushers that also barely get any usage. Sigh... I should really wear make-up more often.

f. That Gal!
Another wonderful face primer that I got and it's a totally lifesaver. Some days, I just go out with my moisturiser and That Gal! on. I know, I know, I'm totally lazy, but you know, it's just perfect for those days when you're going out for just a short while to grab something to eat, and you want to look nice, but not totally made up. Trying to look like you don't try too hard? This is great! It gives your skin this really bright, youthful and perky look. I mean, just compare :

g. You Rebel Lite!
I think I'm doing it wrong... :( When the SA applied this for me, it looked really good, and it also was right up my "oh I'm so effortlessly beautiful without wearing makeup but I actually am" alley. This is a tinted moisturiser (the lite version is for lighter skin tone?), but "defiantly different" because it provides SPF protection, complexion coverage and moisturisation all in one.

Following what the SA did, at home, I did my usual routine of putting moisturiser first, then I applied That Gal! and followe that with You Rebel Lite. It came out sooooo oily and "shiny", and it was rather hard for me to blend. Maybe I'm not used to it... I'll give it another shot. Also, maybe I shouldn't use That Gal! with this even though the SA said I could? Cos sometimes when I'm hardworking, I use That Gal! underneath foundation and it looks fab.

(I'm saving the last two items to be reviewed in another entry as my camera ran out of battery.)

I'm a person who is very easily taken in by cute packaging and even cuter newsletters. Benefit caught my attention that way and I've always been hankering for moarrrr. Here are some stuff that *did* catch my eye :

1. Ooh La Lift!
Have always been interested in this product. In fact, it was between Ooh La Lift or Erase Paste, and I took Erase Paste because it was more versatile (can use on any blemish, not just your eyes) while Ooh La Lift is only for your eyes. But still... I want it!

2. Thhhrob
From their box o' powder series... I think this should be quite a sexy look... and it's something that I don't have in my arsenal yet. ;p But do I really want to look on heat all the time? Hehehe... the packaging is sooo cute though! And it's a unique blue-pink color...

3. 10
A bronzer & a highlighter in one. I didn't take note of it before because I wasn't sure how to use it, but MakeupAlley reviews kinda make this seem like an idiot's guide to sculpting & highlighting cheekbones. A lot of people say that I have nice cheekbones, so it would be nice if I highlighted it more I guess. ^^ Basically just swipe down right in the middle so you get equal amount of bronzer & highlighter on your brush, swipe onto your face (highlighter on top, bronzer at the bottom) and blend, blend, blend. If it's idiot-proof, I'm in.

4. Girl Meets Pearl
Since I'm such a fan of That Gal!, and this is That Gal's sister, I have high hopes for this one!

5. Cha Cha Tint || Benetint
Apparently the "must have" item for summer 2011 is Cha Cha Tint, but I'm not so sure about it because I've actually never even tried Benetint before. Should I get the basic one before I go for odder colors? I vaguely know how it works, and I'm alright with finally getting my very first Benetint, but Cha Cha Tint's advertising campaign has a model wearing it... and it looks so... painted on. Is it really such a strong look? I won't be able to pull that off! Should I just get both?

6. Dr Feelgood's Velvety Complexion Balm
Just read the description on the website and I feel like I really need a good face cream. I know I exhort good drugstore products, but occasionally I like to indulge, yea?

My online haul today :

Wow, I'm so accurate, hehe. So this is how I decided on Cha Cha Tint over Benetint --- cos Cha Cha Tint is $1 more expensive than Benetint... with Benetint, I only reach $114... lol!

Remember, it's :
+ WORLD115 - free shipping for $115 purchase or more

I also tried these coupons that I found online, but none of them worked. ;_; Or maybe they couldn't be used together with WORLD115... hmph!
+ WHTARUSH - free full-size Rush Hour with $75 order (expires 14 June 2011)
+ PWDR4YOU - free full-size Powderflage with $85 order (expires 30 May)
+ FREEBRSH - free fluff brush with $40 order(not sure when expiring)

Good luck! Can't wait to receive my new stuff! (Oh my, estimated delivery date is in the middle of July!)