Hello everyone! It's been all about high end makeup for the past week, and it's due time to change it up a bit around here with some makeup products I've got from Guardian and Watsons! I'm actually sharing a bunch of items I found from the Catrice counters, which is a brand I have never come across with till just recently and I gravitated towards Catrice as their products do look promising, and packaging is actually not too shabby for a drugstore brand. I was extremely impressed at how cheap their prices were, for example, their blushers retail for only MYR16.88 *wow*.
I wasn't really big on drugstore makeup in Malaysia because the ranges carried here haven't been quite appealing. Take Loreal for example, we don't have the Infallible line brought it, nor the latest Mono Shadows that I am trying to get my hands on. It's so frustrating that we have to rely on personal shoppers to bring in products from the States or U.K. since the shipping charges isn't worth it to buy it on your own. But fret not, Watsons and Guardian are upping their game as they have Collection, Physicians Formula, Catrice, Essence, Bourjois and many more for us makeup fiends (yay~) Since I have about 6 items to review today, I'd say you should grab a snack, kick back and let's talk makeup!
Catrice Sun Glow Matt Bronzing Powder in 020 Deep Bronze
Colour & Pigmentation
There were three shades available for this bronzer - 010, 020, and 030. I wanted 030 Medium Bronze which was a bit less orange (labelled for medium skin) than 020 Deep Bronze, which was labelled for darker skin. But they were out of stock for 030 Medium Bronze, so I settled for this one instead! The colour on 020 Deep Bronze is definitely a deep, warm, orangey bronzer which I know it sounds scary and very Jersey Shore gal, but trust me this bronzer gives a beautiful warmth on my skin and actually complements my skin's neutral undertone. I think I like this bronzer a bit more than my NARS' Casino, in terms of the colouring! This retails for MYR 21.90 and you get a hefty 9.5g of pure, bronze goodness. I absolutely love how the colouring on this bronzer gives dimension to my face and that instant hotness that a good bronzer gives, y'all know what I'm talking bout. Hahaha.
Texture, Finish & Application
What sold me into buying this bronzer was genuinely the texture itself, I swatched them in-store and the powder was so silky-smooth and I could just expect that this bronzer would blend like a dream. Now I wouldn't say it is super finely-milled but it is super soft to the touch and applies so beautifully. This powder is best applied with a kabuki brush, as it is much denser so you get more pigmentation out of it, (not that it's not pigmented but I do have trouble of colours showing up on my skin). It doesn't become patchy at all, and the colour blends out smoothly as expected from feeling the texture of the powder itself. Super impressive, as it is up there with the higher end bronzers in terms of its quality.
Catrice Defining Blush in 090 Mandy-Rine
Colour & Pigmentation
This Catrice blush is a cool toned peachy orange blush, and I find that if you use any types of blushers with a cool undertone, it really does a great job on brightening your skin. This one really does! It's a unique colour to have in my blush collection cause I have a lot of more muted mauves blushes, and nothing like Mandy-rine. I wouldn't say that this is my favourite colour, but I gravitate a lot towards earthy-orange colours lately, and it will be either this or Burberry's Earthy No.07 or even both at once! The pigmentation on this one is tad too pigmented for my taste (but the more the merrier), so just a slight tap into the pan is all you need to get the colour to show up. I ain't complaining but be careful not to overdo it! Because this blush is cool-toned, and the bronzer is warm, it creates a really unique pairing. This retails at MYR 16.88 and you get a full 5g, mm hm. Yes.
Texture, Finish & Application
Again, as the bronzer was, the blush is silky-soft. It has Vitamin E in the ingredients and claims to nurture and smoothen small skin imperfections, mmmm I don't really think it did that, at all. BUT. The blush blends beautifully onto the cheeks, and even though it is a matte powder blush, it does not look cakey at all. I like to apply it upwards onto the higher points of the cheekbones instead of in circular motions to give a more defined look with my one and only Bobbi Brown blush brush. I think a Hakuhodo S103 or Wayne Goss' 00 Brush would give this blush a better look as you can cut a cheekbone better with a more tapered blush. Overall, it is a really pretty blush and I'm a sucker for textures and the softness of the powder is just amazing.
Catrice Liquid Metal Eyeshadow in 100 What Do You Sea?
Colour & Pigmentation
This vibrant ocean blue shadow is an absolutely gorgeous colour which has silver micro-shimmers all over the pigment - I love shimmers on deep colours like this one. Blended out, it is still a gorgeous blue, but to get that deep smokey effect, layer it over a dark kohl - Chanel's Rouge Noir, a plummy brown would be a good choice of colour to bring out 100 What Do You Sea's oceanic turquoise blue. The pigmentation on this particular shadow is great! It is very pigmented, but when blended out, you lose the depth of the colour. Again, just layer this over a dark kohl and you'll be good to go. I forgot how much this costs, but I can tell you that it was less than MYR20 *EDIT* I've checked it for you all, it's MYR19.70. You get 3g, too. I mean, look at the swatch above, this shadow is just a winner.
Texture, Finish & Application
The shadow itself comes in a 3D texture with scale-like embossing which is super pretty, but it does annoy me a little cause it's difficult to pick up the shadow with my 217 brush as the surface is not flat. To pack on the colour, I highly suggest to use either your fingers and pat the colour on or wet a flat shader brush to increase the intensity of the pigment. The colour takes some work to blend out because of the high pigment but it doesn't become patchy whatsoever. The finish on What Do You Sea is a gorgeous shimmery blue. Ive also been able to use this as a liner by wetting a liner brush and mixed it in with a white eyeliner to create a pastel blue which is perfect for spring time looks.
Catrice Camouflage Cream in 010 Ivory
Colour & Pigmentation
First off, I got the wrong shade. 010 Ivory is obviously too light for me to cover any blemishes, BUT I got it to work as a highlight for underneath the eyes and oh my god, it is perfect for that. I thought that it was going to be to be flaky and dry because the texture is not very creamy, but it wasn't! It absolutely brightened up my under-eye area and covered any darkness. I baked it with the Chanel Natural Translucent Loose Powder and this combination gave me a flawless smooth finish, I was staring at the under eyes for a good half an hour. I will be getting the 020 Light Beige soon to test it out for covering blemishes, but so far as a highlighting concealer, I really like it! You get 3g of product and this retails for MYR 16.90. Sahhhhhhhhh cheappppp.
Texture, Finish & Application
This concealer is a cross between a waxy concealer and a creamy-liquid concealer, so blending it was quite a feat because of the lack of emollient with the texture. I've used this concealer on my under-eye area, underneath the cheekbones, on the bridge and the sides of the nose and above my forehead - basically everywhere.. so I attempted to blend it in with my fingers, but nope it's too slow so I took my Real Techniques Buffing Brush and that got the job done. This concealer, I think would work really well with a damp Beauty Blender, or by damping the buffing brush... which I just thought about while writing it.. dammit. The finish is a really nice satin-dewy hybrid which makes the skin look natural. Though, I must say the concealer smells hella weirDdDdDddddd. Smells like Play-Doh, seriously.
Catrice Eyebrow Filler Perfecting & Shaping Gel in (010)
Colour & Pigmentation
This brow gel comes in 2 shades, based on Catrice's EU website. But I think Guardian only carries shade 010, which is a neutral taupey brown that adds warmth to the brows without being burnish red. I love the colour of this brow gel, and I'm never one to like a warm toned brow but this works well on my skin and hair colour (dark brown hair). I don't really like the brush on the applicator as it is too gigantic to my taste, and my brows are quite thick. I can imagine that it is a bit of hassle to use if you have thinner brows than mine. The pigmentation on this is again, very good. What's up with Catrice being over-performing?? You're making other brands look bad! This one is MYR18.90 and you get 6.5ml, and that is so cheap in comparison to my Eyeko Brow Gel which I have given away in favour of this Catrice Brow Filler.
Texture, Finish & Application
Unlike the Eyeko Tinted Brow Gel, which is liquid-y and runny in texture, this brow gel has a mousse-y, creamy texture which is just an indication that it would definitely plump up the volume of your brows. And it sure does. It has a really matte finish and it's not glossy and piece-y like the Eyeko brow gel which I hated. This just gives a really nice, youthful looking brows by adding fibres to the hair and sets in place pretty quickly, so you do need to work fast if you smudged it where its not supposed to go hahaha. It does tint the base of your brows if you work it into the brows, and I'd say that this is convenient if you are in a rush and you don't have time to fill in your brows. I suppose its better on fuller brows, I can see that this product won't fair too well with sparse brows, looking from the oversized brush and the formula itself.
Catrice Professional Kabuki Brush
I seriously can fall asleep when I use this brush. This kabuki brush is super, super dense and it has 100% synthetic bristles. It is fairly soft, by all means it's not Hakuhodo soft, but it's pretty fair for the price - which is MYR24.90. Das cheap. I think the density of the brush itself helps in making this brush not too scratchy. The brush itself flares out into a square shape on the edges, but remains curved at the top which is a standard shape for a Kabuki brush. I absolutely adore applying bronzers with this brush as it is so dense and I have a hard time for colours to show up on my cheeks so the density of this brush aids in getting the colour on ma face. Get it all on there. So, in comparison to the sizes (picture above : Bobbi Brown blush brush, Real Techniques buffing brush, Catrice Kabuki brush) the Kabuki brush is definitely much more rounder and bigger in size of the bristles. As you can see, the handle is quite lean and long for a kabuki brush of this design. The brush buffs in bronzers like a dream, and gives a diffused look around the edges. I like the fact that it picks up product and disperse it on the skin so well. Love this.
Camouflage Cream in 010 Ivory, Liquid Metal Eyeshadow in 100 What Do You Sea?, Defining Blush in 090 Mandy-rine, Sun Glow Matt Bronzing Powder in 020 Deep Bronze
So we've finally come to the end of the review, and here is the final look! I've blended in 020 Deep Bronze into the crease and 100 What Do You Sea on the eyelids and used it as an eyeliner as well. On my brows, I've combed through the brows with the Eyebrow Filler and as mentioned, used the Camouflage Cream as a highlighting concealer for underneath the eyes and everywhere else. For a finishing touch, I've applied 020 Deep Bronze onto the cheekbones and topped it off with 090 Mandy-Rine quite high up on the cheeks.
So, what's the verdict? I love Catrice!! You will definitely see me trying out more from Catrice Cosmetics in the near future and possibly other drugstore brands (gaspppp). I really love the textures of their powders (oh-so soft, unbelievable), and the pigmentations on all the products (!!!) and will be picking up more eyeshadows and bronzers (and the correct shade of concealer, lol). If you're looking for star products from Catrice, I'd say go for the bronzers, bases or brows. Spot on.
You can find Catrice Cosmetics off Guardian, in-store and online (here)
or Watsons in-store, not available online
I've purchased mine at Guardian's Selayang Mall, and Watson's Solaris Damansara.
Thank you for hanging out !
Farah x
