NC Nolasco Reviews: L'Oreal Superliner Carbon Gloss Liquid Eyeliner

If you're into "dramatic" eyes, like I am, liquid or gel eyeliner is the way to go -- at least, that's what non-stop Michelle Phan makeup tutorial marathons would have me believe. Going on in a more solid line than the often powdery effect of pencil liners, liquid or gel liners are useful for creating the ever-so-popular (blame Holly Golightly) cat-eye effect, perfect for a touch of glamour from day to day.

Having gone through the aforementioned Michelle Phan makeup video marathon, I decided to try my luck with liquid liner. Before that, I'd been patronizing Styli-Style Line & Seal

Waterproof Eyeliner (a review on that to follow), so I wasn't exactly sure what brand of liquid to buy -- Michelle Phan's "Prestige" drugstore eyeliner isn't exactly available in Philippine drugstores. So, after patrolling the makeup counters at Shopwise, I settled on L'Oreal because, as my mother insists, if you're going to try a new kind of makeup, best try one from an established brand for less likelihood of annoying allergies. So I dropped the somewhat pricey Php. 800+ for the tiny, 2-inch (minus the huge cap which holds the sponge-tip applicator) bottle.

L'Oreal's Pitch:

Superliner Carbon Gloss is a liquid eyeliner in a special sponge tipped pen for the creation of fine lines or thick, sultry flicks. The intense carbon black colour is applied with precision and ease and dries without smudging. Ophthalmologically tested. Thanks to its soft and supple sponge tipped pen, Superliner Carbon Gloss gives a quick, easy and uniform application. Create a line as thick or as delicate as you wish. Hold the eyelid taut with your other hand to facilitate application.

For the record, my first try using Superliner was on the flight from Manila to Incheon airport, inspired as I was by Michelle Phan's airplane makeup video. It being my first time to try on liquid liner, and factoring in the inevitable turbulence most plane rides involve, it took me a good thirty minutes (and a lot of wiping off and reapplication) to accomplish a barely-there cat eye. The sponge-tip applicator is literally a sponge that gradually tapers to a dull point, and while it's useful in creating a thick and dark line, its shape requires a bit of clever wrist-work to master. Having recently tried Maybelline's new gel eyeliner (comes with a brush), I found this one harder for first-time application.

Nothing if not tenacious, I continued "practicing" applying the liner for ten minutes every day

while I was in Korea. It doesn't dry as quick as I'd like, which means you have to hold your eyelid closed for at least twenty seconds after application, or else you'll get a nasty blot. Also, the tapered applicator made it tricky to apply a continuous line, so you sometimes might end up with a thicker line that you'd like. The tapered tip does tend to flatten on one side a bit over time, though, which makes it easier to attempt those Michelle Phan eye-makeup tricks the longer you use the liner.

It takes a bit of practice before you finally get the hang of application, but once you do, the Superliner does deliver on its promise of versatile line thickness and no smudging when it

dries. The latter trait is useful for wet Q-tip spot correction -- wet Q-tips can cleanly get off excess liner, making it easier to get the precise line shape you want. After a few tries, I was able to manage that sought-after Audrey Hepburn cat-eye.

When it comes to staying power, the liner does stay on for the whole day, but over the course of the day mine tended to get flaky so if ever I rubbed my eye, it came off as powdery dust and I was left with a liner-less eyelid. I'm not sure if this is because of my makeup base (FORWELL's Natural B.B. Cream), or really a trait of the Superliner, but at any rate, you should avoid rubbing your eyes anyway. Other than that, the liner delivers on its promise of lasting as long as you need it, and once you don't need it, it proves easy to remove (wet tissues do the trick just fine).

Overall, I think it's a pretty good liquid liner, not "Super" as the name implies, but plenty useful, especially if you want that stark black cat-eye. It takes a bit of practice to master, and even if you've mastered it there's no guarantee you won't be needing those wet Q-tips, but the dramatic effect it produces is worth the bit of practice you'll need to create it. The applicator takes some time to get used to, but the bottle has a large opening so it's easy to dip a liner brush into the bottle and use that instead. Admittedly, for a liner, it is a bit expensive, but L'Oreal is a tried and tested company and for those with sensitive skin, the extra cost is worth it if you want to play it safe.

For those who want a bold black liner with precise shape, L'Oreal Superliner Carbon Gloss delivers on its promises. The price isn't surprising for a brand-name makeup like L'Oreal, but it can be off-putting to makeup mavens who are on a budget. Still, for those who are willing to invest the money and time in mastering this liner, the expense is worth it.

Rating: 4 stars out of 5 (minus one star for price and slight difficulty for first-time liquid liner users).

****

L'Oreal Superliner Carbon Gloss Liquid Eyeliner is available at the L'Oreal makeup counter in Shopwise, but you can check out L'Oreal counter at Rustans if you're a Citibank cardholder, so you can pay half of the price with your Citibank rewards points.

Can't take my word for it? Check out:

http://pandadoesmakeup.blogspot.com/2009/03/review-loreal-super-liner-in-carbon.html - Review of British makeup maven "Panda"

http://www.glamourmagazine.co.uk/beauty/products/top-ten-galleries/081106-top-ten-liquid-eyeliners-loreal-pa.aspx - Glamour Magazine UK's ranking of the liner among its "Top 10."

http://www.indianvanitycase.com/2010/04/loreal-super-liner-carbon-gloss-review.html - Review by a self-confessed "Beauty Addict" from Delhi, who loves the sponge applicator.

http://www.ciao.co.uk/L_Oreal_Super_Liner_Carbon_Gloss__Review_5896968 - Reviews of others who've tried the liner.

http://cosmetic-candy.com/?p=12184 - Comparing Lancome's Artliner with L'Oreal's Superliner

Correction 6/5/2010: Prestige Eyeliner, a.k.a. one of Michelle Phan's choices for liquid liner (I think she's also used Lancome Artliner.), is available at Beauty Bar. Thank you fellow critic-in-arms, P. Cruz, for pointing that out!

P. Cruz Reviews: My Empire

If you've been active on Facebook lately and are into games, you might've noticed this new Playfish game My Empire.

It's your standard build-a-city game where you earn money to build up your nation for "glory" and so on. When you start the game, there's this a nice intro where you see a Parthenon-like structure by the sea, when it ends, it brings you the tutorial, for first-timers. The story is you left your home nation to start up your own. You have one neighbor, a village hall, a harbor, and if my memory doesn't fail me, one house. The tutorial instructs you the hire a tax collector, after all, what can a governor do without taxes. ;)

There are four options for collecting taxes, 5 minutes, 4 hours, 12 hours, and 24 hours. Once you hire a tax collector, you wait your selected duration for him to come back with your coins; you also have that amount to time to come back for them once if you don't arrive precisely on the selected time. For example, if I selected 5 minutes, I wait 5 minutes and my money's there; after 5 minutes, I have 5 more minutes before the money disappears. Perhaps the tax collector runs away with it or something. What's nice for Playfish is that 5 minute option is free (the other options require the player to pay around 10% of the amount of the tax), enticing the player to keep using that option, so keeping the page open, captivates/distracts the player, making it more addicting.

I've digressed. Anyway, additionally, at start-up, you have 3000 coins to build houses and other buildings that will increase the the capacity (for living) of the city, the happiness of the citizens, and the fame of your nation. The population of your city dictates how much tax you receive. The continual erecting of houses is not enough though. You have to keep your citizens happy by either building "happiness" structures or decorating your nation. Fame is your point system. The more famous you are, the higher your level. Though it doesn't really affect your citizens, higher levels unlock structures that are more efficient, like houses that take up the same amount of space, but let more people live in them.

As you level up, you'll unlock the mine, the mill, and the quarry. Once you build them, you'll have to wait 24 hours for them to produce bronze, wood, and stone, respectively. These objects are for building more advanced structures. If I'm not mistaken, the first structure you'll be able to build with these things will be Stonehenge.


Stonehenge? What's Stonehenge doing in here? We'll it's a Wonder that's why. In the game, Wonders are things you construct with the help of your friends. You have to collect some wood, some stone, some bronze, and some tar to complete it's construction. You get tar by having your friends send some over. Wonders are not the only structures you need your friends for. When you construct your temple and your court, you'll need to ask your friends to help build it with you, of course they'll be compensated for their generosity. Hopefully, you'll thank them by helping them build whatever they want to build or by sending them whatever they need.

Overall, I'm generally ok with the game. I like the graphics, but as with normal online games, it's pretty pointless and a waste of time. (If you're like me, though, you overlook that and continue to play.) It's still quite new (I think it was released on May 13), so it's still kinda glitchy. The glitch is linked to my main issue with the game as well. What I like about Playfish games, compared to Zynga games, is that you don't need to add your friends individually to get them connected to you in the game. For some reason, in My Empire you have to invite your friends to be neighbors before you can visit them. (Minus 25 points in my book.) So, this leads to the glitch where even after I add my friend, he/she doesn't appear on my neighbor line-up. :( On the Playfish forum, people say the best way to avoid this is to go directly to the game after accepting a neighbor invite.
I think I'll come back to this in the future and review it again, when it's all better. That's one of the things I really like and somewhat dislike about Playfish. They update their games a lot. I do mean a lot. They update Restaurant City and Pet Society weekly with new and exciting themes. (Random: So far, I don't like the 24 hours shifts in Restaurant City.)

I'd give My Empire 3.5-4 stars for now.


Links:
The game: http://apps.facebook.com/myempiregame
My Empire Facebook page: http://www.facebook.com/myempiregame
My Empire Site (for more screenshots, etc): http://www.playfish.com/?page=game_my_empire
Introductory post on the Playfish blog: http://playfish.wordpress.com/2010/06/01/welcome-to-my-empire/
Thread on neighbor glitch: http://forum.playfish.com/showthread.php?t=1848194

*logo from Playfish blog, link above

NC Nolasco Reviews: Insa-dong

Photo credits: F. Torres, 2010.

Despite the present hostilities between North and South Korea, the land of Super Junior and Winter Sonata still makes for a great vacation destination. Especially for tropical-country dwellers such as myself, for whom the cool Korean spring happily coincides with our steaming Filipino summer. Going from a skin-cooking 36 degrees celsius to a charmingly brisk 11 degrees C should be enough of an incentive to take that five-hour flight from Manila to Incheon (and the one-and-a-half hour bus ride from Incheon to Seoul).

Once there, a K-addict has any number of ways to take in the Korean culture -- shopping, eating, visiting historical sites, etcetera. The well-organized Korean subway system makes any of those options within reach, but for the tourist who wants to do all that and only has a few days to do it, the must-see destination should be Insa-dong.

The former site of the residences of ancient Korean aristocracy, Insa-dong has been transformed into Seoul's most famous "cultural street." Souvenir shops, antique stores, restaurants, cafes, and historical sites jostle for prominence along the stretch of road, with narrow alleys branching out from the main street. Close to Jogyesa, one of the most significant Buddhist temples in Korea, as well as Jongno Tower and the Samcheongdong art district, Insa-dong is a flurry of tourists on most days, yet still manages to retain a bohemian, non-tourist trappy vive -- a bit like a cleaner Quiapo/Binondo, for all the Tsinoys out there.

Start your journey by getting out at Exit 3 of the Angguk subway station, or from Jongguk station. From there, the street stretches out in an endless promise of cultural experiences and serious retail therapy. A restaurant in an alley next to the avant garde souvenir center Sszamsiegil serves yummy Bulgogi and accepts credit cards. A cafe a few doors up the street (with no name but recognizable by the huge picture of a black teacup and the words "Coffee and Tea" emblazoned on the short building's glass facade) serves delicious lattes in an ambiance akin to having coffee in someone's private library.

Sszamsiegil, touted as "an Insa-dong within Insa-dong," boasts of 42,700 square feet of cute souvenir stalls, clothing stores, and cafes, all mounted on a strange slanting stairway that spirals up and up until you reach a "Book Cafe" at the very top, which boasts of a lovely view of Insa-dong. Definitely worth the visit to Sszamsiegil is the FORWELL natural products boutique on the ground floor -- their products are all organic and range from clothing to cosmetics. A personal favorite of mine has to be their Natural B.B. Cream, which is a combined concealer, sunscreen, primer, and foundation. (This, however, is biased towards those with yellow-hued skin.) I had to say no, however, to the organic sanitary napkins, made with antibacterial charcoal -- the thought of having to wash and reuse something that's been "down there" during "that time of month" didn't exactly appeal.

Also, be sure to leave your mark in Seoul by doing some "vandalism" on the walls of one of Sszamsiegil's side stairwells -- declarations of love, variations of "____ was here," and slightly-philosophical aphorisms clutter the walls, some newer ones even being written over older ones. I had the privilege of inaugurating a windowsill with my own mark.

The Official Korea Tourism Website will give suggestions on where to go and what to see along Insa-dong, but, from personal experience, the best way to experience the street is to wander around aimlessly (no joke), letting anything catch your eye. Handmade-souvenir stalls, jewelbox art galleries, and even an erotic museum (For all those newlyweds out there, the Asian Eros Museum is a recent Insa-dong attraction; no, I didn't visit it.) are potential attention-grabbers, and with so many options, it's next to impossible not to find at least one thing that will stand as a symbol of your unique Korean experience. Froyo fans, keep your eyes peeled for a hidden Red Mango!

The only cons about Insa-dong are one, it's awfully long and chock-ful of shops and side-alleys, so a one day excursion to the street may not be enough, and two, given its status as a must-see cultural street, it can get awfully crowded with tourists and locals alike. I visited Insa-dong twice during my seven days in Korea, and entered it from both the Angguk station side and the Jongguk station side, which made a whole lot of difference as to what I saw. As for the crowds -- a suggestion is not to visit on Sunday, which is a day when Insa-dong is especially crowded. Aside from that, you'll just have to make your way through the masses, but the business of the street rather adds to Insa-dong's unique "ambiance."

All in all, for those who are energetic and adventurous enough to brave the crowds, this street is definitely worth a visit when in Seoul. A crazy mix of modern and traditional, antique and new, Insa-dong offers something special to every visitor, and no one leaves it empty-handed (though empty wallets are another matter).

And if all else fails, there's always that erotic museum.

RATING: 4 stars out of 5 (minus 1 star for crowds and long walk)

***

For further information, visit:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Insadong

http://www.visitkorea.or.kr/enu/SH/SH_EN_7_2_2_3.jsp

First Post!: On Critics and Charmeleon

For all the pertinent details about the critics, what we critique, what our credentials are, etcetera, we direct you to the sidebar.

Everyone's a critic. Literally. Anyone who has taken their friend aside and (for the purposes of this blog, we'll assume said friend is female) told her that a movie "was soooooo awesome" or that a restaurant "wasn't that good" was essentially giving a review, albeit a highly simplified one. Giving a review of something isn't rocket science, unless you happen to be giving a review about a new brand of rocket fuel, or something.

That being said, there are critics...and there are critics. There is your average guy or girl on the street who is content to restrict his or her (the inconveniences of being politically correct!) opinion to "good," "bad," "awesome," or "UGH," and there are people like the ones you see in the newspapers and magazines, giving highly-detailed (and sometimes highly entertaining) reasons about why a movie was "soooooo awesome" and how a restaurant "wasn't that good." If critics were Pokemon, the average guy on the street would be a Charmander, and the magazine critics would be Charizard.

We're somewhere in the middle. We'd be Charmeleon.

Lying somewhere between the casual opinion of that average Jane (or Joe) and the highly-zealous scrutinizing of the magazine critics are our opinions. We don't pretend to be experts...we're more of obsessive amateurs, and, with all the zeal of that obsession, we'll try to crank out coherent reviews on things we think deserve reviewing. We can promise you that ninety percent of the time, we'll be coherent.

Not convinced? Stay tuned for our first review.

- NC Nolasco