5/24/2022

St. Ives Facial Scrub Coconut & Coffee, 150ml

This is a good facial scrub that leaves my skin squeaky clean. I love the caramel latte sort of scent, which adds enjoyment to my daily routine. The tube is generous in size and a small dub goes a long way. My only concern is that this scrub is actually quite coarse, despite the coconut added to it, and very hard on my delicate skin. I think it needs more oil in it to make it softer for my skin. For the rest, good value for money.

5/21/2022

ZIG 2 Way Glue Chisel 4Mm Blue

I bought this due to the very practical design as it's a small bottle ideal to store and carry around. Most importantly, I wanted to try the chisel tip as I use this to glue small pieces onto my collages and this seemed perfect to easily and evenly spread the glue. That was my wish. The chisel is similar to that of acrylic markers but has to be pumped out every time you want to use the glue not just the first time. Glue is liquid, spreads well when the tip is moist but it does not when the tip is not. The adhesive strength and quality of this glue is similar to average school glue sticks I also use. That being the case, I won't buy this again

5/20/2022

Karbon 25W ES Clear Dimmable Decorator G95 Globe

This is a beautiful vintage-looking large dimmable bulb. They have, at least with my lamp, three different degrees of brightness. They create a very lovely romantic and cozy atmosphere in my bedroom, and they are perfect to pace my getting up in the morning going from very faint light to bright one. My only criticism is that these bulbs are extremely flimsy and delicate and break easily. This is the second replacement I've bought in a year. For the rest, a beautiful atmospheric bulb.

Rimmel London Provocalips 16HR Kiss-Proof LipColour 310 Little Minx

I've been using this lipstick since it came out to the market. I love the colour, which really suit my skin colour. Most importantly, this is a good value for money lippy. It stays on all day even after eating, and, depending on what I eat, it will last till next morning before I shower. It is matte when used without the gloss coating. Otherwise, it looks moist without being glossy. The clear coating really goes quickly, so I barely use it on weekdays. This lasts me for a long time as once light coat does the job.

Sayeec 6 Watercolour Brush Set

I've never used water brushes before, so I decided to start with something simple and affordable and bought this set.

These brushes are light and easy to use. The set has a good variety of brush tips sizes and the barrels are super-easy to fill in; I put them underneath the tap and they fill in a microsecond.

The tips get stained with strong colours, but are also easily washable and return, almost, to their original colour once you clean them.

The water top open to the left and not to the right, which is the opposite of most screw-opening systems.

My only concern with this pack is the two biggest brushes tend to leak. I think because I press them harder as they're thicker, but ain't sure. I've started to press them less and I I see that that's working better. Yet, these two biggest brushes don't work as natural as the others, which I use without having to think how much pressure put on.

This set is perfect for beginners like me, as it is easy to use and a great alternative to normal brushes for watercolour or water-based acrylics and pastels.

5/08/2022

Meeden 5-Piece Painting Knife Set

I've never used painting knives before, so my review cannot take into account any professional knives out there or make any comparison. However, I've used these knives extensively in the last weeks and I think they're perfect for beginners.

GREAT
> Good looking set, with a beautiful wood handle that looks elegant and expensive.
> Flexible stainless steel metal that I can safely bend and use in different ways.
> Easy to clean under water or with average cleaning wipes.
> Lightweight.
> The mix of shapes allows me to create different textures and shapes on paper and are also ideal to make painting marks.
> Great value for money when I bought them.

OK
The golden letters on the handle are cheaply made so the gold leaf is already peeling after less than a month in my hands.

Kaisercraft Kaiser Colour Acrylic Paint, Candy

This is a gorgeous colour and a decent acrylic glaze at a great price. It is not a paint per se as it is runny and body is fluid not medium or heavy. Average quality and a good amount of product for the price as well. I don't like the cap, as it too small to store the tube vertically, and, that being the case, it needs lots of storage space.

5/06/2022

Faber-Castell Smooth Watercolour Gel Pastels Pack of 12

This pack has become one of my fav painting sets. It's great quality and really versatile. It's like a cheaper version of the gelatos sticks (i.e. water soluble pastel pens). I've used them in different ways (scribbling on a paper and then adding water, or using water over the tip to splatter colour or adding water to the tip to soak the brush and use it as a watercolour) and the results are fantastic. They are packaged in a way that the pens are protected by the pen-like twistable capsule, so they're easy to handle and put away. On the other hand, they can safely be placed vertically in a pen holder and the shape is perfect to tack them all together in little spaces. The sturdy plastic box they come in is perfect to air the wet pens while stored This a selection of basic colours with a lovely gold colour as a bonus. I wish these pens were thinner and a few more hues were included in the box, but I cannot complaint as you can still mix the colours to create new ones. Most happy with this set. The value for money is an added bonus because these are, after all, Faber-Castell.

Aifuda 3Pcs Rubber Brayer Set (1.37, 2.36 & 3.93 Inch)

This is a great set of good quality brayers. I use them for my mixed media projects and I'm very pleased with them. They're as heavy as the materials they're made of, which is sturdy plastic, rubber and metal. You can get an idea of the real length of the rollers by looking at my photo taken by a pencil. My only criticism is that the smallest brayer came used or slightly damaged, ain't sure, as per my photos. Great value for money.

Ohuhu Dual-Tip Brush Pen & Fineliner Color Markers, 36 Colors

This is an amazing value for money set The variety of colours is wonderful. These markers are like mini Tombows minus the price tag. Most of the caps match the real marker colour. I've compared and tested them against my Tombows and here are the results: 1/ The Ohuhus have a finer fine point nib, but the brush tip is very similar although smaller. 2/ These markers are shorter, so I'm just guessing that the inner barrel contains less product, which can be expected for the price. 3/ As the Ohuhus are shorter than the Tombows they're easier to store vertically in my pen holder. 4/I have tested them with water, and they react the same to water and on the same paper, no noticeable difference, as per photo. 4/ The external barrel material is cheaper and lighter, which has its pros and cons.

The colour chat that comes with the set is not really good as the real colours look different, as per my photo.

The packaging is OK.

Most pleased with this markers set and with the brand, as this is the third product that I buy from them and it has a great quality/price ratio.

5/02/2022

Geli 360-Degree Rotating Pen Holder

This is an affordable good looking pen holder. It holds tons of stuff in the three-tier structure, more than I could think of, and it rotates beautifully so its really practical. The compact design allows me to save space on my desk. It has a warm white colour, so it blends perfectly with any decor. It's made of sturdy plastic. It cleans easily even when it gets splattered with acrylic paint just by using acetone or a stencil cleaner. Most happy with the product and the price.

5/01/2022

Tsukineko Fabrico Dual Tip Marker, 116 Peony Purple

This purple water-based ink marker is just beautiful and great quality. I don't use this marker on fabric but in my media projects. It works very similar to my Tombows as it is also water-based. It is permanent once it dries off. The instructions on the pen say to store it horizontally. I have it vertical on my pen holder and I haven't seen any issue with that.

ScotchBlue Original Multi-Surface Painter's Tape, 18mm x 54.8m

I've given this a try due to being labelled as an artist's tape. It is a good as my other cheaper masking tapes but at higher prices. I love the colour, as it makes easy to distinguish the edges from the paper. I also love that it is scented. My main issue with this tape is that destroys my 180 mg and 200 mgs mixed media and watercolour paper if you let the tape stay for a day or two. The second issue with this roll is that it is unnecessarily bulky, like double the diameter than my other big masking tapes, and it requires a lot of storage space. if the hole in the centre was way smaller, the roll would be thicker but easier to put away. I won't buy this again.