Bourjois Khol and Contour Pencil in Brun Design

Bourjois Khol & Contour Eyepencil in 78 Brun Design, R85,95* on rubybox.co.za 

I was cleaning out my makeup bags the other day, and didn't realize I had so many.  I hardly use black eye pencil, but I have four (????), of which I use one.  Maybe they've been procreating?

I digress.

I received the Bourjois Khol & Contour Eyepencil in Brun Design with the Smokey Eyes Trio last month, and I'm slightly infatuated with it. It's super soft and rich in pigment. It's a beautiful, dark, matte brown, like the colour of Lindt 70% Cocoa chocolate. Yum. I would've loved to take a picture of the eyepencil and chocolate side-by-side, but... chocolate. Yum.

You could use this sharpened to get the perfect barely-there line on your upper eyelids with little effort. It's also GREAT for tight-lining, and because it's so soft, minimal manipulation of the eyelid is required. No pulling, stretching, lifting. If you prefer a thicker, more obvious khol line, you could use it blunt or simply slant the pencil like you would for "shading" in a colouring book. Keep in mind that this pencil is super soft and you need minimal pressure during application. I learnt this by bending and breaking the nib a couple of times.

The Bourjois Khol & Contour Eyepencil in Brun Design is also SUPER for contouring and smudging. I could create a perfectly acceptable and presentable smoky eye using just this pencil. Srsly. Wanna contour your lids? Simply dot/dab the pencil in the crease of your upper eyelid and smudge'n'blend with your ring finger or a blending brush. Even those little sponge applicators you usually get with compacts can be used for this. For an intense smokey eye, you could line your entire lid with this and simply smudge'n'blend the obvious lines and voila. If you're going to smudge and blend with ease, you have to do it soon after application, though, or you'll need to use a little more effort for it to budge, and probably some beauty tools, too. This makes it great for flicks and winged-liner, especially if you're not comfortable and confident with liquid and gel liners. Which brings me to it's "hold"...

It is long-lasting, and won't run and smudge unless seriously provoked. This isn't an eyepencil that will move in the slightest if you splash your face with water. You can't just wipe this away without makeup-remover or cleanser. Is it hard to remove? No. But water is not going to cut it. I had created flicks with this pencil last week and forgot to remove my eye makeup before jumping into the shower (and I avoid "washing" my eyes, as my current cleanser is not ideal for the eye area) and my eye makeup was still fully intact. Not even the slightest smudge or fading, and I had rinsed my face a couple of times to remove my cleanser properly AND I had dried my (whole) face. Impressive staying power, right? Whether or not it lasts 16 hours, I wouldn't be able to tell you, as I've never worn makeup for that long. But, on their website they state that it was "scientifically tested on 22 consumers - result obtained on 32% of panelists", so if you need your eye pencil to last for that long, I hope you're in the 32%. I love that they disclosed that. And I love scientific tests. A lot.

To add to it's multi-purpose appeal, this is also a great eyebrow pencil. I have naturally dark brows, but sometimes I need to fill a few gaps, especially when I'm going through a "reinvention" phase where I decide to change the shape of my eyebrows, or change the position of the arch. If you've read about my hair issues, you'll know that this is the only way I'll attempt changing my look. For now.

I'm tempted to contour my whole face with this pencil, because it's so nice. The only thing holding me back is that it's way darker than a "couple of shades" and I may look dirty, but I'll be totally on it should I have no other contouring products handy, if and when needed. Also, watching my eye pencils get smaller as I sharpen them makes me sad. 

Have you tried any of the Bourjois Khol & Contour Eyepencils? Which colours are your favourite?

Miss B

*At time of publishing

Bourjois Smoky Eyes Trio in Rose Vintage

I was fortunate to receive the Bourjois Smoky Eyes Trio in Rose Vintage 05 from rubybox for my last task as a RUBYROYAL, where I demonstrated one of the ways in which you can take your look from day to night.

Bourjois Smoky Eyes Trio in 05 Rose Vintage*

The Bourjois Smoky Eyes Trio uses "baked technology", is enriched with mineral powders, and is fragrance free. It's cutely packaged in a "compact case" that includes a double-tipped applicator. I've dropped the compact onto tiled floors at least twice in the past month and it has only 1 scratch on it and the shadows haven't broken or cracked, which is pretty impressive. Had I dropped my professional palette (again), I would've mourned the death of at least one (more) shade.

My first impression was that it would make a great blush. At least, that was my intention for the medium shade as it looked like the perfect shimmery pink for my complexion (I've noticed that I tend to think this about many products colour-coded as "rose"), but after trying it I've decided that it is much better as a cheek highlighter, as shown in this video. I don't usually stray far from neutrals when it comes to eye shadow, so I was a bit hesitant when trying this out. 

It says "silky, easy-to-blend texture, 8-hour wear" and I find this to be accurate. Mostly. It's super silky and soft and easy to blend, but I found the lightest shade to be "harder" than the others: it didn't pick up onto my brush as easily as the other 2 shades, and I had to do that horrible swiping motion with my brush to get the pigment onto the brush. You know, like some impatient cashiers do with your Smart Shopper/Vitality/Clicks card? Or like you did when you were about 6 years old, playing shop-shop with your plastic till? I'm all for product economy, and all that friction created "dust" and I had to wipe away most of it. I find that a finger works slightly better.

Left: no flash. Right: flash. Yes, I'll get better at taking pics with one hand.

The lightest shade looks like a pale rose mist-/seashell-/lavender blush-/antique white-meets-pearl or, more simply, a shimmery champagne pink. Although, it didn't pick up easily with the brush, it was soft and easy to blend once on the skin. You can also use this shade not only as a highlighter on your brow bone and inner corners of your eye, but also on the bridge of your nose and cupid's bow. Use it sparingly, though, as it is very shimmery. Great glam for night, but I'd spend more time blending for day wear.

The medium shade is my favourite. It's a light piggy-pink shade. It's great over the entire lid as an everyday application. It's my lazy-girl shade at the moment, meaning if I have to leave the house, I swipe it on, apply mascara and that's my eyes done. Nothing else needed, as it's so pretty and brightening enough on it's own. As mentioned above, it works nicely as a cheek highlighter. It may be slightly too pink (and shimmery) to use as a highlighter anywhere else on your face. Depending on your complexion, you could use this as a shimmer blush, or as a shimmery veil over your matte blush. Remember to start off with a light-hand and blend well. It's easier to layer to get the desired effect, than to try to correct too much shimmer at a later stage. This shade is also great to dab over a lifeless matte, pink lipstick/tint/gloss, and you could do this over the entire lip or just at the centre for some dimension.

"Plummy" was the first thought I had when testing the darkest/sculpt shade. Actually, it's the colour of dried-red-roses before they turn brown and crumble. Duh, "Rose Vintage". It's intense. You won't need to dampen your brush to intensify this shade, simply pat it on and BOOM! It doesn't become much darker the more you layer it. It's pigment-rich and what you see is what you get. I did a single application (one layer) in the swatch above. What DOES happen when you layer it, though, is that the lighter accents of the shade become more apparent, giving it a more pinky, pearlized effect.

The Bourjois Smoky Eyes Trio in 05 Rose Vintage can be versatile in terms of function and the colours are great for any eye and complexion colour. Although I was a little concerned at first about the "pinks", it complements my brown eyes, and I've worn even the darkest shade more than I thought I would. I don't often expect eyeshadows to last for 8 hours, even if it clearly states that it will, but this one did. In fact, it lasted just over 10 hours. I applied it in the morning, cleaned the house**, walked the dogs on the beach**, made dinner and then showered, and it was still intact before I showered. I had rubbed my eye once that day, forgetting I had applied a full face makeup, and it smudged a little, but didn't come off completely. I hadn't used a primer or applied powder that day, I simply applied it over my tinted moisturizer, which seemed to be enough. There was slight creasing, though, but not enough to make me want to remove it or reapply it. Nothing a primer or some powder pre-application couldn't fix, in my opinion. 

I've put the Bourjois Smoky Eyes Trio 05 Rose Vintage in my personal makeup collection, and there it will stay. Not only because of all the above reasons, but also because the man had noticed it and said I looked pretty and asked if I was going out when I applied it that morning before cleaning (even though I was wearing trackpants and an over-sized t-shirt). That coming from a guy who asks, "Did you wash your hair?" or says, "your hair looks nice" when he thinks something's different but can't figure out what...like when I tweeze my eyebrows or paint my nails. Really.

Miss B

*prices vary depending on where you purchase it. I've checked a few online stores, but the price varies by as much as R70.

**This is how I test the "longevity" of makeup: I apply it in the morning after cleaning my face, I clean the house (properly, not just pack dishes away) and then walk the dogs. Sometimes I'll throw a workout into the mix, but this rarely happens.

Day-to-Night Makeup

My latest video for rubybox is up, and it shows you a simple way you can take your makeup from day to night at your desk. Of course, there's not just ONE way to do this, so I'll be doing a post about other ways you can adjust your makeup from day to night.



I thought it appropriate for this time of the year, as there are many end-of-year functions, after work meet-ups and cocktails happening and not everyone has the time to rush home and change outfits/hairstyles/makeup completely.  

Of course, this is useful for any time of the year. Many people have places to be after work and want a little more from their makeup.

I used Bourjois Smokey Eyes Trio in Rose Vintage, Bourjois Khol and Contour in Brun Design and Bourjois Rose Exclusif lipgloss in the video, which were sent to me by rubybox. Thanks, Rubies. I'll be doing full reviews on all the products soon, so keep an eye out for it. I am thoroughly impressed with Bourjois products, and am especially obsessed with their Rose Exclusif lipgloss, and haven't worn another lip product, other than lip balm, since receiving it. I'm wearing it right now.



Miss B