Capsule Reviews: Snoe's lipsticks, sunscreen, body gelly, and micellar water
Summer may leave us feeling hot and muggy but doesn't mean we're giving up on our beauty routines! Whether you're at a tropical paradise or stuck in the city, Snoe’s new releases are the perfect addition to your summer essentials.
From left: So What, Copycat, Destruction and Bitter
First off, let’s talk about the gorgeous lippies! The Rouge Deluxe Exotique Lipsticks (P499) are buttery mattes with a creme finish. They are vividly pigmented, comfortable on the lips, and reasonably long-wearing with little to no feathering! I find them to even be tad moisturizing despite the true matte finish. The formulation has great longevity for a bullet lippie, and I didn’t have to constantly reapply every hour, which is one major drawback I typically get from conventional tubes. Another favorite feature? It has the most addicting caramel popcorn scent! I’ve had friends literally come up to me with confused faces and ask if I could smell caramel popcorn, too. The scent is sooo yummy-smelling and while this is a major plus for me, it might be off-putting to others who are sensitive about scented facial products.
Swatches, from bottom: So What, Copycat, Destruction and Bitter
The formulation is rich and creamy, applying very smoothly on the lips for the most part. However, the lighter colors had to be built up with more layers for full opacity. Though all the photos showcase beautiful colors on my lips, I had some issues about the bullet shades versus how they actually looked when applied. The colors of the bullets look distinct from each other but looked very much alike when worn.
Copycat seemed to be the closest match to its tube counterpart. The in-tube color of what looked to be an MLBB shade was still a far cry from the bright, rosy pink shade on my lips, but it is definitely wearable for everyday. It was also my favorite overall in terms of application, as it glided on smoothly while depositing substantial pigmentation in one swipe. The lightest of the shades I have, So What, is a very pretty pink with a slight brown undertone. While it was probably a closer MLBB for my skin tone, it had to be layered twice or thrice to achieve the full-bodied color of the lippie.
On the other hand, the darker colors showcased deeper and fuller pigmentation, but suffered from the drawback of chalky application. Bitter (a gorgeous warm red) had to be layered - not for fuller color but to create a more even finish on the lips. Destruction was not as chalky and applies as a true blue red when layered twice. Overall, the lippies were great - comfortable, non-greasy, pigmented, and long-wearing! However, the shades may not have been so different from each other as to stand out, and it's confusing to get a sometimes very different color from what you see in the tube.
While pops of color are an essential part of any summer FOTD, it’s important that you also keep your skin in check. Summer is all about fun under the sun, but the harsh rays and stifling heat can cause lasting damage. Luckily, Snoe’s summer line has got your skin covered!
Start your day right with some SPF
I used the Here Comes The Sun Cream Instant Diamond White Sun Lotion (P599) for a little over a week as part of my daily routine. It boasts of SPF 50, powerful whitening properties, and the ability to give skin an instant glow. It highlights three main ingredients: Bengkoang (Singkamas), which prevents skin damage and inhibits melanin production; Deoxy Arbutin, a skin whitening agent that safely fades out dark spots and evens out skin tone; and Tranexamic Acid, which is supposed to whiten and reduce dark spots. Tranexamic Acid also contains anti-inflammatory properties that soothe and restore sun damaged skin.
Here’s how it looks straight out of the tube side by side with how it looks when sheered out. You can see small flecks of shimmer on my wrist area.
The sun cream can be a little intimidating at first, as it seems a little thick when you squeeze it out of the tube. Surprisingly, it absorbs quickly on the skin and leaves a slight tackiness, a faint white cast, and a very shimmery glow. Due to the presence of glitter and fragrance in the formula, I didn’t use it on my face but I did use it on my neck, arms, legs, and torso! The cream also has a pleasant fruity scent which I liked, but could trigger a reaction in my sensitive skin had I tried it on my face. It’s worth noting that the product also has a bit of flashback, but I wouldn’t call it a dealbreaker since I only used it on my body. I liked how it gave me a full-body glowy finish, and it didn’t make me look pasty even with flash photography.
For regular days of just school, work, or hanging out, the Here Comes The Sun Cream works great. After it absorbs, it doesn’t feel heavy on the skin. The tackiness and scent can sometimes be off-putting but I found that it wore well. I didn’t notice any skin whitening but that may be because I wasn’t constantly reapplying every two hours as directed.
The packaging doesn’t indicate if it can be used for swimming or outdoor activities so I check by taking it along on a resort trip. I applied regular sunscreen to my lower arms and legs, while my neck, shoulders, and arms had the Here Comes The Sun Cream on. I spent the first hours just lounging on the shore then reapplied the lotion before heading into the water. I spent the rest of the day playing frisbee and swimming, and the next day I had an angry, red, and painful sunburn all over my neck, shoulders, and arms! I thus confirm that this is not a good choice for swimming or extended sun exposure.
The Body Jelly looks like lotion but has a gel consistency.
Freshen up in between
I also brought the Body Ritual Recipes 5 in 1 Body Jelly in Honey Dew Melon Yogurt (P399) for my trip so I could freshen up between showers. The Body Jelly is supposed to be a body sanitizer/freshener with deodorizing properties as well as a toning body serum. This was a novel idea and though I don’t understand the serum part, this was my FAVORITE product from my Snoe selection! Super versatile and portable with a pump you twist to close, it comes as a lifesaver especially on days when the heat just makes you feel gross. I simply slap some on and feel reasonably clean and fresh after. I feel like this also helped me from getting an irritation from the dried chlorine and salt water on my skin while we made our way back to the hotel.
I now regularly keep the Body Jelly in my bag and take it wherever I go. As a weird but cool bonus, the product also claims to inhibit fat cell synthesis and differentiation. I don’t think I’ve seen any effect on this end but I’m definitely sold just using it as a body sanitizer!
Get un-ready instantly
This has got to be one of my favorite skincare product finds for this year. I keep the Eau Lala Magical Micellar Gel (P899) on my bedside table next to some cotton pads so I can easily take my makeup off even after a long, tiring day. The gel texture and the (surprisingly) addicting fruity smell of chia seeds and prunes are refreshing and cooling, which help me feel more energized.
Actually, you don’t even need to use a cotton pad with this product - I just like seeing the removed makeup on the pad because it makes me feel cleaner. The gel is actually a 2-in-1 cleanser so that if you add water, it foams up and washes away! So cool, right? If you’re not feeling up to rinsing your face though, wiping the gel residue off works just fine, too. Note that while the product does contain alcohol, it doesn’t dry my skin or cause irritations. The chia seed extract keeps skin moisturized and promotes elasticity while the prune extract contains strong antioxidants that protect the body against free radicals. The prune extract also keeps the skin nice and supple, while promising anti-aging and moisturization.
The product can take a bit of time to work to remove all traces of makeup though. It takes maybe two pumps and a lot of wiping for me to completely remove product from my face. Thanks to the unique formula, I can easily double-cleanse afterwards by activating it with water!
Snoe might be known for its cute cosmetics, but I think they really knocked it out of the park with their skincare releases. The Body Ritual Recipes Body Jelly and the Eau Lala Micellar Gel have become new beauty staples for me, and I’ll probably be stocking up on these even past season!
What are your summer essentials? Would you try Snoe’s new releases? Sound off on the comments below!
Khae Aruelo is an intern at Project Vanity, and is currently fulfilling a degree in Communications. When she isn’t dying from school work, she is probably designing, writing, and taking photos - or indulging in her current vices of pretty cocktail drinks, semi-sweet iced coffee, and obsessing over her next online purchase.