Shiseido is a brand I am slowly delving into. I received the Majolica Majora Lash Expander Frame Plus (wow! that’s a mouthful!) mascara as part of my Christmas loot. I had extremely high expectations for this mascara because I’ve seen so many people rave about it on Makeup Alley and YouTube (missglamorazzi).

When I first opened the mascara, the wand looked peculiar to me, since I am used to a comb or a spiral, this wand is neither of those. Instead, it’s a short curved comb on one side and a straight-edged shorter comb on the other. The first noticeable thing about this mascara is suction in the tube when pulling the wand out, which ensures you get the right amount of mascara. I really liked this because it means I don’t waste any product by having to scrape it off the side of the bottle, which I’ve had to do with previous mascaras. 

The formula is incredibly fibrous, which can be seen in the photo above. Shiseido claims this waterproof mascara plumps up lashes while creating sky-high length. My lashes are relatively long so I have be extra careful when applying any type of mascara, but I found the applicator did a fantastic job of coating my lashes. I could actually see my lashes thickening up with every stroke. This mascara did an above average job of holding my lashes’ curl, which I highly appreciate! I wore this mascara all day and it didn’t budge or smear at all! Not to mention, the mascara came off easily with makeup remover, so it was fuss-free!

Without mascara:

With Shiseido Majolica Majora Lash Expander Frame Plus

Overall, this mascara is marvelous for everyday wear. I used Lash Expander Frame Plus in my Quick Everyday Look tutorial. At the moment, I don’t use it for looks requiring really full and thick lashes, but maybe that’ll change in the future!

Bottom Line: I highly recommend. 

During a recent Target trip I discovered the Maybelline Baby Lips Lipbalm Collection and decided to give it a try since I still wanted to find a great tinted/colored drugstore lip product. The only color that really appealed to me was 15 - Cherry Me. 

This sheer cherry-red lip balm contains SPF 20, which is great for protecting the thin layer of skin on your lips. On first application, Baby Lips feels incredibly smooth and moisturizing. I immediately preferred the sheerer feel of Baby Lips to the Revlon Lip Butters I previously reviewed. 

This product has a highly scented fruity smell. After applying the product, I can definitely smell the fruity scent for five to seven minutes. After a while, my nose became accustomed and I didn’t smell it anymore.  

After approximately three hours of wear, this lip balm did not make my lips peel, which is a nice success! The cherry red tint had sunken into the lines of my lips, however. I didn’t feel any dryness, which I commonly get with other lip products after some time has passed. My lips didn’t particularly feel as incredibly moisturized, but they did feel soft and at ease, not chapped or on the verge of ripping at all!

Bottom Line: Maybelline Baby Lips Lipbalm is a much better lip treatment product than the Revlon Lip Butter, which is more like a lipstick. I would repurchase this as a drugstore lip tint. Baby Lips is moisturizing and doesn’t leave lips feeling dry or make them peel.

One of my New Years Beauty Resolutions was to take better care of my lips. Lips don’t have any sebaceous glands to keep them moisturized like the rest of your skin. They have to rely on saliva, which can easily make your lips dry and chapped, especially in the wintertime. It’s actually better NOT to lick your lips when they’re chapped because once the saliva evaporates, it’ll leave your lips drier, so try to resist licking them until you can get your hands on a lip product, no matter how hard it is!

HK Golden Age is now HKGoldenAge.com! You no longer need to type in “.tumblr.com” anymore! Aren’t you glad you don’t have to type in those annoying extra words? 

I just wanted to thank everyone for their love and support. It’s really been quite lovely hearing everyone’s comments and thoughts. I really appreciate every single follower, like, and reblog.

If for any reason, you have any questions related to beauty & fashion, don’t hesitate to ask me! I’m available through the “Ask” function on tumblr, twitter, facebook, email… there’s plenty of ways to contact me. Also, please do tell me what you’d like to see more of. I’m still trying to figure out what everyone seems to appeal to most. I’d really appreciate all of the honest input.

Hoang-Kim