Beauty Binds #3 – Forehead Wrinkles

This is the last of a series I have written about beauty dilemmas that continue to haunt me. In my first post of this series, I talk about how I deal with concealer that creases and in my second post, I go through tips and tricks I have tried to stop my eyeliner from smudging. In my final post in this series, I want to tackle the issue of forehead wrinkles. More than crow’s feet or laugh lines, I feel that forehead wrinkles bother me the most because they simply just cover more surface area. I don’t aim to look wrinkle-free, but I just want to look a little younger than my real age. I guess, this is my version of aging gracefully. So what have I tried so far?

Method #1 – Exfoliation

I used to be the laziest person when it came to exfoliation. After applying layers of skincare, the thought of doing another step just didn’t seem appealing to me. However, over the years, I have read many articles about the benefits of exfoliation. It helps promote cell turnover to reveal newer cells underneath. Thus, it can help create a brighter complexion. When it comes to beauty, you can’t be lazy, so I decided to start exfoliating once to twice a week. I find that it helps the skin look smoother and brighter which also helps diminish the look of fine lines. I didn’t have much luck with physical exfoliators as they tended to cause my skin to breakout. However, I have been loving Sunday Riley’s Good Genes, which smells awful, but is not irritating and really makes my skin smoother and “glowier.” It is a chemical exfoliator (AHA), which uses lactic acid to get rid of that top layer of dead skin. Do you have any favourite chemical exfoliators?

Method #2 – Vitamin C

I honestly don’t think I would have gotten into Vitamin C skincare if it weren’t for Instagram. After scrolling through endless photos of skincare routines, Vitamin C skincare products were everywhere. So I finally amped up my research game, and started to learn about why I needed it in my skincare routine. Vitamin C is an antioxidant with amazing anti-aging benefits, including evening out and brightening the skin. I found that exfoliation showed more immediate results, but Vitamin C might take a bit longer. At first, I didn’t think my Vitamin C serum was doing anything till I noticed how smooth my forehead looked after I put on foundation. So you might not want to give up right away if you don’t results immediately. My favourites Vitamin C Serums so far are Wishtrend’s Pure Vitamin C 21.5% Advanced Serum and Ole Henriksen’s Truth Serum.

Method #3 – Pack on the Moisturizers

If you have started to notice wrinkles, you will know that the drier the skin is, the more pronounced those wrinkles look. That is why I think moisturizing your skin is a very important step. I used to go crazy packing on tons of moisturizers hoping that it would fix the problem. Sometimes it did, but sometimes I would also start to breakout in certain areas, probably due to the moisturizers clogging my pores. Lately, I have been loving layering toners using the Korean 7 Skin Method. Korean toners are usually more vicious and full of great skincare ingredients. You pat in the toner and then wait a few minutes before patting on the next layer. Basically, it is a less heavy way of infusing a ton of moisture into your skin. Afterwards, my skin looks glowy and more “bouncy” to the touch. My favourite toners for this method include Whamisa’s Organic Flowers Toner and I also love ID.AZ’s Dermastic Essential Toner.

With regards to a more traditional moisturizer, I have had a lot of luck with moisturizers that have snail secretion filtrate. They keep my skin moisturized even in the dry winter months. My favourites include COSRX Snail 92 All In One Cream and Tony Moly’s Ferment Snail Essence. If you find snail-infused beauty products too slimy, I find adding a facial oil is also a good idea because it really boosts hydration. I am currently using Fresh’s Seaberry Moisturizing Face Oil.

Method #4 – Facial Massage

This is a step I only recently added to my skincare routine, but I think it really does help. I have been mostly focusing on my forehead and I try to do it morning and night when I do my skincare routine. I usually do it when I apply my facial oil because it makes the massage smoother. If you find doing a whole face facial massage too time consuming, I recommend just targeting the area that you are most concerned about first. Here is a great video from Wishtrend about facial massage:

Method #5 – Apply a Primer Before Foundation

There are many primers out there that promise to fill in your pores and fine lines. However, I have not had much luck with this method. There is one primer though that I find to be somewhat effective. It is the J. One Jelly Pack which is more of a firming primer. It is quite different from any other products I have tried before as it is very sticky and thick. When you apply this clear gel onto your skin, you really have to push it in. It is worth it though because you do feel it tighten your skin and increase the longevity of your foundation. My only qualm is that it seems to be more effective with certain foundations and moisturizers. To be honest, I still haven’t gotten this product completely figured out.

Have I missed anything? Thank you for reading.

Beauty Binds #2 – Smudging Eyeliner

 

This is the second post in my series about beauty dilemmas. If you are interested, you can check out my first post about tips and tricks I use to stop concealer from creasing. It only makes sense that since I named my blog, Smudges, that the next beauty dilemma I am going to talk about is dealing with smudging eyeliner. After many years of testing out multiple eyeliners, I think I have now resorted to the fact that most eyeliners will smudge at least a little bit on me. I understand that my hooded eye shape and watery eyes just makes it a bit harder for eyeliner to stay put on me. For me, eyeliner usually starts disappearing on the outer corner where I wing out my eyeliner. So here are a list of tips and tricks I have tried over the years to keep my eyeliner from smudging.

Method #1 – Simply Find an Eyeliner That Won’t Smudge

I have tried a lot of eyeliners in my life time. There are a few eyeliners that have stood up the best on my eyelids. For pencil eyeliners, this would include Clinique’s Quickliner For Eyes and Etude House’s Play 101 Pencils. An honourable mention for me would be Stila’s Smudge Stick Waterproof Eyeliner. I have been wearing the Clinique liner since university and I love the glide of this pencil and it is also is a turn-up pencil so you don’t need to sharpen it. It pretty much stays put all day expect for the wing part of the liner which tends to smudge a bit on the bottom of the eye. The Etude House one actually has better longevity, but like many gel liners, it dries out pretty quick. My favourite liquid eyeliners are Kate Super Sharp Liner and msh Love Liner. Both of these liquid eyeliners draw beautifully and also last almost the whole day.

Method #2 – Wear Eyeshadow Primer

If you want eyeliner to stay put, your eyeshadow better stay put as well. Since I have oily eyelids, I pretty much have to wear eyeshadow primer every time I do an eye look. My favourite eyeshadow primers are the Nars Smudge Proof Eyeshadow Base and the Balm’s Put A Lid On It Eyelid Primer. The Nars one is amazing for keeping eyeshadow crease-free all day and it blends so smoothly onto the eyelid. I have not found one better than the Nars one. However, if you want something a bit more hygienic thats comes out of a tube, I would recommend the primer from the Balm. It’s performance is almost as good as Nar’s primer. I have also tried putting primer on the outer corner of my eye where I would wing out the liner to prevent smudging, but my eyes are so watery, it doesn’t really help.

Method #3 – Don’t Wing Out Your Eyeliner

This is a technique I often use when I am just fed up with my eyeliner smudging on the outer corners. I know, winged eyeliner is such a beautiful thing. It elongates your eyes and gives your eyes more definition. However, it is such a hassle sometimes to check to see if it has smudged that I actually don’t wing my liner sometimes. I will just end it at the outer corner of my eye. Sometimes, I actually prefer this look as it makes my eyes look rounder. Most importantly, I don’t have worry about smudging as much.

Method #4 – Carry cotton buds

Recently, I have started to carry tiny cotton swabs and even cotton swabs with eye makeup remover to fix smudges. Usually, when I am lazy, I will just wipe the smudged eyeliner away with my fingers. Sometimes, I will also use a tissue or even a paper towel if I am desperate. However, tiny cotton swabs are perfect for this job. My favourite are from Muji and I have also discovered Muji’s Cleansing Cotton Buds which I also enjoy if you are wearing waterproof eyeliner.

If you have any tips and tricks dealing with smudging eyeliner, please share below!

Beauty Binds #1 – Creasing Concealer

When it comes to beauty dilemmas, there are some that I can just let go, like finding a mascara that will actually give volume to my short Asian lashes. However, there are some beauty conundrums that I still obsess about till today. I thought I would do a little roundup of them over several posts and talk about possible solutions that have worked for me and some that have not. More than that, I really hope that you have some tips and product suggestions to offer me so I can finally let go (if that is possible).

Conundrum – Finding a concealer application method that will not only cover my dark under eye circles but will also not crease as well

I know that I am cheating a bit here by trying to solve two issues, but if there is one beauty problem that I am obsessed with fixing, it is these two. I think concealer is so important for looking fresh and awake in the morning. Even if I don’t apply foundation, I will always try to put on some concealer. I still don’t think I have found my perfect combination of technique and products yet, but I wanted to talk about a few that I have tried over the years. Some were picked up through through magazines, Youtube, and Intagram, and others were just some of my own experimentations.

Method #1 – Simply Find a Concealer That Will Not Crease

Maybe I am just asking for too much. I honestly don’t think there has been a concealer that didn’t crease on me a little bit. If I had to choose, I think that the Nars Radiant Creamy Concealer would be the best concealer I have tried that will only give me minimal creasing. For an Asian brand, I find the Ipsa Creative Concealer, which is a cream concealer, doesn’t really crease that much on me. If you know of a great concealer that does not crease, I would love to know.

Method #2 – Powdering After Applying Concealer

Powdering any makeup will increase its longevity. So it should be a no-brainer that you should definitely set concealers with powder since they are usually creamier. Believe me, I have tried this technique on and off for years and I must admit I still don’t love it. I have also tried applying the powder with a brush and and pressing it in with a puff. However, it has either left my under eye area looking super dry or made the creasing even more pronounced.

Method #3 – Use a Sponge to Apply the Concealer

I have been using this technique on and off for a while. Mostly, this is because I feel using a sponge to apply concealer sometimes takes away some of the coverage. However, I do think it can help minimize creasing just because there is less product that can crease. Lately,  I have also started to dip my Beauty Blender into thicker concealers like the Laura Mercier Secret Camouflage, and then press it into the skin. This allows me to keep the coverage without worrying if it will get too cakey or crease.

Method #4 – Only Applying Concealer to Where You Need It

I learnt this technique last year and it is one of my favourites. Often when I watch Youtube, I see people loading tons of concealer allover their under eye area. However, sometimes, I find that it is more important to focus the concealer only on the darkest areas. This way, you use less product and minimize the chances of creasing and it looks more natural. I think the renowned makeup artist, Lisa Eldridge explains it best in the video above. She also talks about applying concealer and waiting a bit before rechecking for any creasing. She will then use a sponge to remove the excess product and smooth out the area. My only problem with the latter technique is that I don’t find that my concealer creases till hours later. I haven’t tried bringing a sponge in my purse though. Maybe I should!

I have also tried using eye primer on the under eye area and baking under the eyes, but I still don’t quite like how my under eye wears over the day. I hope you enjoyed this post of me rambling about concealer woes. I would love to hear your concealer tips and tricks.