I love how the 4U2 Glitz Shimmer Brow Mascara works wonders for me! I got the dark brown shade (which looked black to me) which suited me just fine.

I initially wanted to get shade 02, which is brown, since I felt it suited my colored hair better. However, it ended up streaking my brow with this weird whitish color at the tips. But it could've been the tester, i'll sure be back to give that prettier shade a second chance!

4U2 Glitz Shimmer Brow Mascara 01 swatch

4U2 Brow Mascara costs a fraction of a MAC browset. It delivers satisfactorily despite the cheap tag (not as marvelous as MAC's, though). This is available in all 4U2 Cosmetics counters in Watson's and SM Department Stores priced at P 234.00.

Will definitely recommend this to those who can't afford a MAC browset and wants to prettify the face further by enhancing the brows. I often use this after using the In2it or ELF Brow Kit to keep my brows in place but on lazy days, I plainly use a dash of the 4U2 brow mascara on my brows to frame my face.

1: Thick application of the Maybelline Lasting Drama Gel Liner
2: perfect brows to frame the face (thanks to 4U2 brow mascara)
3: after 2 hours on my oily lids... smokey look na
4: effect of 4U2 brow mascara + maybelline gel liner
5: bare face: before Pure Anada Minerals+4U2+Maybelline
6: don't let the shimmers freak you out; not shimmery at all on the brows
7: brow mascara 6.5g, P234; gel liner, P449

Learning to apply the product properly on the brows for makeup newbs will definitely want them to repurchase. I discourage those who do not plan to use this often as I noticed that this brow mascara dries up in the bottle gradually over time.

I love the 4U2 Glitz Shimmer Brow Mascara to bits. It's cheap, effective and definitely something that can revamp the way your face looks!

There's more to want from 4U2's new collection, Envy, aside from the Makeup Palette I told you about a couple of posts ago. 

These are makeups you'd really want to tote around because of their cute yet sleek packaging (albeit being plastic). I've tried bringing out my makeup palette for a blush touch-up in a public CR once and all the girls stared at the pretty box I was holding :)

Prices are not really cheap (well, for a drugstore brand), but are not too steep either if you want good quality products. Those gorgeous palettes are so affordable at P394 ($9), for the lips, and P444 ($9+) for the eyes. I'm expecting the gel liners and the mascara to perform well since they aren't so cheap at P414 and P324 respectively.

I was pretty impressed with the 4U2 Envy Radiance Powder. It gave me an instant glow when I tried buffing my face with it (it pays to always tote a brush around!). No itching felt and the best thing is that it didn't turn dark on my face after walking around the mall for several hours. I wonder how this fares in the summer...

4U2 Envy Radiance Powder, SPF 35, P494

I will definitely buy this soon. Especially since these prices are markdowns of their original! It's a boo-boo that I failed to ask how soon their sale period ends :(

4U2 envy is exclusively distributed by Watson's and SM Beauty. Problem is, not all counters carry all the products in this collection so I always head to SM Beauty Makati, Megamall and North EDSA to check these babies out. 

My skin's far from perfect, but I have to admit that it has greatly improved! 

I find that the deep acne marks on the cheeks and temples were rather easy to blur with just mineral powder (no more liquid face base!) these days. Also, my previously oily skin, which fails to hold makeup without proper priming, is now significantly less oily!

I'll be hitting my second month on my local Obagi from Doc Six Foronda and I'm attributing my skin's great improvement from it (here's the set), add a couple of TCA and Diamond Peel treatments for my scars and blemishes. The less oily factor, I feel I owe hugely from Shu Uemura Balancing Cleansing Oil in Fresh.

Showing off the cheapest flaunt-worthy silver bracelets I've ever hauled
(got them @ 75php apiece, less than $2)
and that's the elbow scar that didn't end up an ugly keloid, see story HERE

Even dear family and friends noticed how much my skin has improved. 

My unflattering cheeks;
 never dared to put blush makeup on them lest they steal the spotlight!

I've always felt that a good sign that the skin is improving is having to be less dependent on makeup and blotting papers. I love the fact that I successfully broke off with having to use liquid foundation on a frequent (c'mon, DAILY) basis.

Far from perfect, but skin has hugely improved (before photo HERE)
No face base, just swatching 4U2 envy's blush and
swiping Wish lip tint on the lips

I am so happy with this skin milestone. :) I'll eat healthy stuff, drink lots of water and sleep not later than 11 PM as my way of contributing to a better skin. Who knows, I might end up with a far better skin in a few months just by living out a healthy lifestyle!

The first time I encountered 4U2 products was when I got hold of their Gemtone Quad in Moonstone. I even did an amateur EOTD (my first ever, actually!) using the affordable eyeshadow quad. Now that they have released a new line called 'Envy', I grabbed the chance to purchase a 4U2 Envy Makeup Set (feel free to click on pics for a ginormous view of pigments).

4U2 Envy Makeup Set in 01... it's no deadly sin!

They have really stepped up this time. The 1 1/8" x 1 1/8" palm-size box contains 3 eyeshadows, a blusher, an eyeshadow applicator, a blush brush and a mirror!

4U2 Envy Makeup Set in 01 Net wt 6g
Also comes in 5 other shadow+blusher combos (#02-#06) 

It's not a fantastic packaging though. It's a lightweight plastic (rather flimsy) and the sad thing is that it can be a bit difficult to open the box (or was it just me?).  Nevertheless, the palette seals tightly and it's just totally jaw-dropping that the tiny 4U2 Envy palette has a matchmaking set of shadows and a blusher (plus tools!).

Swatches. I have never tried any blush from this brand but I have to say I'm really impressed with how pretty palette 01's blush is on the skin.

4U2 Envy Makeup Set 01 Blusher's swatch

Why isn't 4U2 naming their pigments? Even with the other quad, I had to play silly and name it S1, S2, S3 and S4 for reference. These lovely colors deserve a name for themselves! I forgot to do so with the pretty blusher but I took the liberty of naming their amazing shadows:

I baptize you 'Clean', 'Sin' (coz you look like UDPP Sin) and 'Tempt'
no primer to boost the shadows' colors, only used The Body Shop's crayon concealer

During that last post on the Gemtone quad, I ranted that I may have bought an expired palette. This time, the 4U2 Envy Makeup Set's manufacturing and expiry dates are blatantly displayed on a sticker on the product's seal (hard to miss)... so that's really good.  Mine will expire on 2013 (manufactured mid 2010).

[Can you help me name the blusher? And did you like the new names of the shadows?]

I will be reviewing the entire set in-depth during the next post lest I bore you once again with my long posts. I know Lysa won't be bored, but I won't keep you. I'll let you drool on the palette for now and give you the juicier stuff that the 4U2 Envy Makeup palette has in store for you later!

The first beauty blog I've ever read was Nikki's, and ever since that read, I fancied about being a pro with eye makeup. Nikki does an awesome job with her eye tuts. Too awesome that it makes a makeup newbie dream that she can pamper her eyes with a splash of wonderful colors, too!

So I tried prettifying my own peepers using the 4U2 Gemtone Eyeshadow Quad in Moonstone.

I stated that S2 and S3 looked similar on the pan during my previous post, I proved my observation wrong with this EOTD...

And I mentioned, too, that S4 looked horrible, well yes, it did.

Bodyshop crayon concealer in 02 applied all over the lid as a base; also applied on the undereye area

S3 brushed all over the lids using ELF shadow brush

S2 patted on the outer third of the lids using same brush

S1 on the inner corner & inner 2/3 of the lower lashline

Maybelline Vivid & Smooth Eyeliner in Brown (unsharpened, hence it looked kinda awful)

Maybelline Unstoppable Shiny Black Mascara + lash curler

And as a newbie, I FORGOT to highlight!

I thought that it looked to strong for my small eyes. And so I painted my eyelids with less color.

A more 'serene' eye. Oh, and I remembered to highlight! Just had to buff and blend well.

Bodyshop crayon concealer in 02 applied all over the lid as a base; also applied on the undereye area

S1 brushed all over the lids using ELF shadow brush

Bodyshop Argyle Pink below the crease using Nichido sponge tip applicator

Bodyshop Imperial Purple on outer 3rd of the lower lashline using Fanny Serrano eyeliner brush

Bodyshop Dusted Silver on the brow bone down to the area between nose and eye using ELF shadow brush

Bodyshop Dusted Silver on the inner corner of eye and on inner 2/3 of the lower lashline using Fanny Serrano eyeliner brush

The Face Shop's pen eyeliner in Black

Maybelline Unstoppable Shiny Black Mascara + lash curler

Fashion21 brow kit

The tools. Gawd, I forgot how to count! 1-2-4-wth?

1. 4U2 Gemtone Quad (P424/$9)

2. Fashion 21 Brow Kit (P100+/$2)

4. old lash curler I need to replace

5. Bodyshop crayon concealer 02 (P600+/$13)

6. ELF eyeshadow brush (P129/$2... it's just a dollar in the U.S., i know)

7. Nichido's sponge tip applicator (set of, erm, 4? or 5? P36.50/75cents)

8. Fanny Serrano short eyeliner brush (P75/$1.50)

9. The Face Shop pen eyeliner in Black

10. Bodyshop's shimmer+sparkle cubes (P1000+/$20)

I only used ELF's eyeshadow brush for these looks (no blending brush or crease brush or whatever... i can't believe it). It is amateur, but methinks I pulled through just fine.

Once I get to buy the other important eye brushes (I'm thinking of MAC 217 and 239) and some fancy lashes, I think I can live up to creating an Askmewhats eye look I've always wanted.

xoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxox

Madeleine is giving away a $15 Aromaleigh GC. Ooooh, i love their URFP's! If you want in, jump in with me to join her contest!

Epilogue to my previous post entitled, 'Beauty Tool Hot Seat: Brushes!': The winner of the Bloom Blush Brush is Larrisa Pedrosa. I was flooded with answers! Thank you girls! By the way, the answer is: all are synthetic. :)

xoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxox

I dropped by Watson's today and bought an eye palette. 4U2 offers a good number of eye shadow pans, including quads and 8-pan palettes.

4U2 Gemtone 4-color Eyeshadow in Moonstone

Watson's, 424php (~$9)

The 4u2 Gemtone Eyeshadow Quad line offers around 12 palettes (I think) in a simple yet catchy packaging. I wanted to buy all palettes, but doing so would be too much... at least for a person who barely knows how to put on eye makeup. So I bought their Moonstone palette.

On the Packaging:

It is decent, it doesn't look cheap. The product is so compact you can throw it in your kikay kit.

Oooooh... looks like a nugget, eh? The Gemtone Quads come in different colors!

Palm-size

Unfortunately, you can tell that packaging is of poor quality once you open the case. There are scratches on the plastic edges and the pans aren't aligned. Call me an OC, but these low-end makeup manufacturers should at least exert effort to take note of the littlest details.

I am clueless about the product's manufacturing date... is it MFG 291107? Nov 29 07? If it is, this is a big 'Oh no!' because I hate getting items that were made ages ago... and 2 years ago is ages ago.

No expiry date; and is this the manufacture date?

Another 'uh-oh' on the packaging is that it doesn't have those tiny holes for depotting. You'll have to use something that can fit the tiny space at the center created by the pans to take them out. Come to think of it, I never saw refills at the counter. However, the SA claimed that refill pans will be on stock soon.

On the shadows:

This Gemtone line is a collection of powdery shadows. Some colors can be chalky (but this specific quad, moonstone, isn't...yay!). The shadows are very pigmented.

Shadows with no name...

I noticed that S2 and S3 looked similar on the pan, while S2 and S4 were hardly distinct from each other when swatched.

swatches under lighting #1

swatches under a different lighting

The only shadows I think I'd use are S1 and S3. S2 is so-so, while S4 is horrible! I'm not sure... but perhaps as I learn more about eye makeup application (and buy the right eye brushes), I'll retract this statement. Who knows?

On the Price:

For 424php, you get pretty eye colors packed in a sleek casing. That's neat!

Overall:

4U2 cosmetics are owned by Belair Cosmetics (USA) and are manufactured in Thailand. It's a shame that 4U2's website isn't working as I love to learn more about them.

I'd love to recommend this, but knowing that Maybelline has eyeshadow quads retailing at ~450php, I might opt to spend on collecting the Maybelline quads over 4U2's.