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| The whole set, kinda cut off the black deluxe sample tube of lipstick in the corner though... |
Showing posts with label makeup. Show all posts
Showing posts with label makeup. Show all posts
Wednesday, September 30, 2015
BareMinerals Mystery Box September 2015
Every few months BareMinerals offers up a one-day special: a set of mystery items for a heavily discounted price. These are usually combinations of full size and deluxe samples that are discontinued, clearanced, overstocked, repackaged, or extras that were a part of a set. Supply is limited and they tend to sell out very fast! I just happened to be online one Sunday when MySubscriptionAddiction updated their website to announce September's BareMinerals mystery box was up for sale. This time the mystery box contained 10 items and costs a total of $30 plus tax and free shipping. So it cost me approximately $32 for the 10 things I received.
Saturday, September 26, 2015
September 2015 Mishibox
September is almost over and I'm just now getting around to posting about this month's Mishibox. I will own up to this lack of posting being due to sheer laziness rather than being busy or exceptionally ill.
The Great Pink Bunny ships consistently around the second week or so of the month (I don't remember the exact date, but they update you and really are on the ball regarding all that stuff), and arrived safe and sound to my house after only two days.
Products 1 & 2: Cleomee Snowy Pore Balm and Donkey Real Milk Oil Mask
The pore balm appears to be somewhat of a skin conditioner and makeup primer. It has donkey milk and donkey oil in it, and promises to "minimize the appearance of your pores and fine lines, brightens skin, neutralizes redness, and evens out uneven skin tone." as well as control excessive sebum production in oily skin. The sheet mask contains some amazing ingredients: donkey oil, donkey milk, Centella Asiatica extract, niacinamide, sodium hyaluronate, sodium ascorbyl phosphate, and other lovely things.
Sadly I cannot use either of these products, as I do not use horse nor donkey oil. Donkey/Horse oil is extracted from the fat of the animal slaughtered for other purposes (usually consumption), and I'm just too close to equids to be able to use those products without getting squeamish. I wish they just had donkey milk in them instead of milk AND oil.
However, I do not fault anyone for using these ingredients! They are wonderful skin conditioners that have done amazing things for so many people! If you have no personal issues with donkey/horse oil, these would be total win products. I already have promised mine to a good friend who is excited to try them.
Products 3 & 4: Holika Holika Nail Polish and Skylake Silk Cocoon Hair Conditioner (bonus free sticker!)
The Holika Holika nail polish came in four different color options pulled from the 2015 Spring/Summer collection, all being almost-neon level brights. The one I received is Pink Blossom, a very bright pink shade. Too bad I abhor pink. That is really just bad luck on my part! This one will be handed over to my older sister who also loves Korean beauty products (and does her nails often).
The hair conditioner from Skylake is based on traditional Korean herbal ingredients, so it has a very interesting smell that some might not like. I like it, though, so it is a keeper. This conditioner does contain two silicone ingredients, which is something that I try to avoid in my haircare products, but the mini size amount means that using it sparingly won't take forever to empty it like a full sized bottle would.
Products 5 & 6: Magis Lene Cell Precieux Toner and Emulsion (bonus serum and cream foil packets)
These are the types of products that I like getting samples sizes of: really expensive shit that I could never afford to try otherwise. The toner and emulsion run between $65-70 each, while the serum retails for $135 and the cream for $170. I like that there are two little samples foils of the mega-expensive serum and cream thrown in. They aren't counted as products, but it just feels like a little extra to play with. All of these products are based on traditional Korean ingredients (hanbang) like the Skylake conditioner, and have ingredients lists almost a mile long. I'm really excited to try these. I still giggle like a schoolgirl when I look at them.
Closing Thoughts:
I felt like this box was really well put together. It had a mix of high end and affordable products, some good full sizes things, and very interesting samples. Even though a lot of these products were a personal miss for me, objectively it was an awesome box. There was haircare, skincare, and cosmetics (the pore balm has both cosmetic and skincare uses) in good balance. After having three months of Mishibox I feel like this subscription would be good for both newcomers to the Asian Beauty scene as well as people who already have a stock of stuff on hand, as they send a good mix of unusual brands and more common ones.
Sadly, I had to cancel my Mishibox after this one. Not because I dislike the box, but because of a lack of funds! My subscription box budget is being taken up by other things (like needing new riding boots), and being unable to have a real job and only able to make cash doing odd jobs for other barns and babysitting doesn't exactly lead to an overflowing bank account. Hopefully I will be able to re-subscribe one day!
Mishibox purchased with my own money. Please feel free to leave Questions, Comments, & Casual Insults below.
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| While you all ooo and ahhh at my stellar photography skills. |
Products 1 & 2: Cleomee Snowy Pore Balm and Donkey Real Milk Oil Mask
The pore balm appears to be somewhat of a skin conditioner and makeup primer. It has donkey milk and donkey oil in it, and promises to "minimize the appearance of your pores and fine lines, brightens skin, neutralizes redness, and evens out uneven skin tone." as well as control excessive sebum production in oily skin. The sheet mask contains some amazing ingredients: donkey oil, donkey milk, Centella Asiatica extract, niacinamide, sodium hyaluronate, sodium ascorbyl phosphate, and other lovely things.
Sadly I cannot use either of these products, as I do not use horse nor donkey oil. Donkey/Horse oil is extracted from the fat of the animal slaughtered for other purposes (usually consumption), and I'm just too close to equids to be able to use those products without getting squeamish. I wish they just had donkey milk in them instead of milk AND oil.
However, I do not fault anyone for using these ingredients! They are wonderful skin conditioners that have done amazing things for so many people! If you have no personal issues with donkey/horse oil, these would be total win products. I already have promised mine to a good friend who is excited to try them.
Products 3 & 4: Holika Holika Nail Polish and Skylake Silk Cocoon Hair Conditioner (bonus free sticker!)
The Holika Holika nail polish came in four different color options pulled from the 2015 Spring/Summer collection, all being almost-neon level brights. The one I received is Pink Blossom, a very bright pink shade. Too bad I abhor pink. That is really just bad luck on my part! This one will be handed over to my older sister who also loves Korean beauty products (and does her nails often).
The hair conditioner from Skylake is based on traditional Korean herbal ingredients, so it has a very interesting smell that some might not like. I like it, though, so it is a keeper. This conditioner does contain two silicone ingredients, which is something that I try to avoid in my haircare products, but the mini size amount means that using it sparingly won't take forever to empty it like a full sized bottle would.
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| Pardon the dust from the packing material that I didn't bother to wipe off. |
Products 5 & 6: Magis Lene Cell Precieux Toner and Emulsion (bonus serum and cream foil packets)
These are the types of products that I like getting samples sizes of: really expensive shit that I could never afford to try otherwise. The toner and emulsion run between $65-70 each, while the serum retails for $135 and the cream for $170. I like that there are two little samples foils of the mega-expensive serum and cream thrown in. They aren't counted as products, but it just feels like a little extra to play with. All of these products are based on traditional Korean ingredients (hanbang) like the Skylake conditioner, and have ingredients lists almost a mile long. I'm really excited to try these. I still giggle like a schoolgirl when I look at them.
Closing Thoughts:
I felt like this box was really well put together. It had a mix of high end and affordable products, some good full sizes things, and very interesting samples. Even though a lot of these products were a personal miss for me, objectively it was an awesome box. There was haircare, skincare, and cosmetics (the pore balm has both cosmetic and skincare uses) in good balance. After having three months of Mishibox I feel like this subscription would be good for both newcomers to the Asian Beauty scene as well as people who already have a stock of stuff on hand, as they send a good mix of unusual brands and more common ones.
Sadly, I had to cancel my Mishibox after this one. Not because I dislike the box, but because of a lack of funds! My subscription box budget is being taken up by other things (like needing new riding boots), and being unable to have a real job and only able to make cash doing odd jobs for other barns and babysitting doesn't exactly lead to an overflowing bank account. Hopefully I will be able to re-subscribe one day!
Mishibox purchased with my own money. Please feel free to leave Questions, Comments, & Casual Insults below.
Wednesday, September 16, 2015
TesterKorea: More Cushion for the Pushin'
At what point does an order become a "haul"? One product is clearly just a purchase, but what about two? Three? Five? Where is the line between "just grabbing a few things" end and "haul" begin? Yes, these are the things I think about as I'm falling asleep at night. I'm totally serious here; please leave me comments with your opinion on this dire matter.
In other news: I had an order come in from TesterKorea. I had intended this to be a basic restock of my Innisfree Soybean Energy Essence samples, but it kinda expanded by two more items. I like the Innisfree soybean essence, but I'm not sure if I like like it enough to buy 150mL worth of it. My face seems to like it enough right now, but my hormonal acne-prone skin changes its mind more frequently than my cat. If you have a cat, you know what I'm talking about here.
So into my basket went four more 4mL samples of the essence. And then I added Urban Dollkiss's Velvety Skin Triple BB Cream miniature. It is only 10mL and pretty cheap, so I figured that if the color looked like shit on my face it was no big loss.
And then I stumbled upon it. The cushion. MY cushion. It called my name.
You see, I'm not one for cutesy. Every now and then it is okay, but usually no thank you. I hate pink. I hate bows and girly. I was a goth in high school. I still own corsets, leather, and stilettos. My spirit animal is a Dominatrix. This doesn't quite mesh well with the Asian Beauty aesthetic, because a lot of that stuff leans toward the girly side. I might not be able to find a sexy goth cushion, but a sexy Pin-Up Girl cushion? Oh yeah!
Urban Dollkiss City Propolis Cushion. I couldn't find any reviews. I had no idea what the color, finish, longevity, or anything was. Would it match my NC/W15 skin? Who cares!
Yep, I bought it for the case. I figured that if it didn't work out, I could use it as a really thick and inconvenient purse mirror.
I haven't time to play with the cushion or the BB cream mini, as life has been pretty hectic (soo...I'm on antibiotics now...) but I was planning on photographing a swatch of the cushion on my arm. Well that didn't work...because it blends in so well with my arm that you can't fucking see the swatch. So uhhhh...I'll get back to you on a review of it!
Apparently TesterKorea is doing a promotional thingy where they send you a packet of free samples if your order price is higher than a certain amount. Mine was slightly under, but I still got the free samples. Odd, since TK is pretty well known for not doing the whole free sample thing.
Okay so I'm going to hit the hay because I have a 7AM date with this lovely lady tomorrow:
Please feel free to leave Questions, Comments, and Casual Insults below. I apologize for typos, I'm a sleepy narcoleptic, yo!
In other news: I had an order come in from TesterKorea. I had intended this to be a basic restock of my Innisfree Soybean Energy Essence samples, but it kinda expanded by two more items. I like the Innisfree soybean essence, but I'm not sure if I like like it enough to buy 150mL worth of it. My face seems to like it enough right now, but my hormonal acne-prone skin changes its mind more frequently than my cat. If you have a cat, you know what I'm talking about here.
 |
| Bad camera + bad lighting + apathy = this photo |
So into my basket went four more 4mL samples of the essence. And then I added Urban Dollkiss's Velvety Skin Triple BB Cream miniature. It is only 10mL and pretty cheap, so I figured that if the color looked like shit on my face it was no big loss.
And then I stumbled upon it. The cushion. MY cushion. It called my name.
You see, I'm not one for cutesy. Every now and then it is okay, but usually no thank you. I hate pink. I hate bows and girly. I was a goth in high school. I still own corsets, leather, and stilettos. My spirit animal is a Dominatrix. This doesn't quite mesh well with the Asian Beauty aesthetic, because a lot of that stuff leans toward the girly side. I might not be able to find a sexy goth cushion, but a sexy Pin-Up Girl cushion? Oh yeah!
 |
| Her book title is "Study Hard: Don't be Stupid" |
Urban Dollkiss City Propolis Cushion. I couldn't find any reviews. I had no idea what the color, finish, longevity, or anything was. Would it match my NC/W15 skin? Who cares!
Yep, I bought it for the case. I figured that if it didn't work out, I could use it as a really thick and inconvenient purse mirror.
 |
| that thing in the edge of the mirror is my knee and ripped jeans |
I haven't time to play with the cushion or the BB cream mini, as life has been pretty hectic (soo...I'm on antibiotics now...) but I was planning on photographing a swatch of the cushion on my arm. Well that didn't work...because it blends in so well with my arm that you can't fucking see the swatch. So uhhhh...I'll get back to you on a review of it!
Apparently TesterKorea is doing a promotional thingy where they send you a packet of free samples if your order price is higher than a certain amount. Mine was slightly under, but I still got the free samples. Odd, since TK is pretty well known for not doing the whole free sample thing.
 |
| Free stuff? No complaints here! |
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| Hay/horses...get it? Hahaha...oh I need sleep.... |
Please feel free to leave Questions, Comments, and Casual Insults below. I apologize for typos, I'm a sleepy narcoleptic, yo!
Saturday, September 12, 2015
Shop Review: Cupidrop
This is going to be a very brief review of the US-based Korean Beauty online retailer Cupidrop since I have heard people recently ask about their reliability.
Shop Name: Cupidrop
Ordering & Shipping:
The Cupidrop website is easy to use and the payment secure. I had previously received a code for 15% of my first order when I joined their mailing list, which is what finally made me pull the trigger and make an order with them. I placed my order late on a Friday night, received an email with a pre-shipping tracking number on Saturday, and my package finally shipped out with USPS Priority Mail on Monday from New York. Because my order was over $50, shipping was free! Priority mail took 3 days to get down the east coast, which I find pretty standard for where I live.
Packaging:
This is what I really regret not taking pictures of: how amazingly well the Cupidrop box was secured. The box was damn near encased in custom-made tape with the word "Cupidrop" printed on it. Custom tape? Okay, color me impressed. Inside the box, each item was individually bubble-wrapped and secured with more custom tape. I could have thrown the box out of a moving vehicle and the products would have survived unscathed, they were that securely packaged.
Products Purchased:
I intend to review these at a later date, so I won't dedicate time to discussing them here
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| From my Instagram yo: UnlacedDreams |
Shop Name: Cupidrop
Ordering & Shipping:
The Cupidrop website is easy to use and the payment secure. I had previously received a code for 15% of my first order when I joined their mailing list, which is what finally made me pull the trigger and make an order with them. I placed my order late on a Friday night, received an email with a pre-shipping tracking number on Saturday, and my package finally shipped out with USPS Priority Mail on Monday from New York. Because my order was over $50, shipping was free! Priority mail took 3 days to get down the east coast, which I find pretty standard for where I live.
Packaging:
This is what I really regret not taking pictures of: how amazingly well the Cupidrop box was secured. The box was damn near encased in custom-made tape with the word "Cupidrop" printed on it. Custom tape? Okay, color me impressed. Inside the box, each item was individually bubble-wrapped and secured with more custom tape. I could have thrown the box out of a moving vehicle and the products would have survived unscathed, they were that securely packaged.
Products Purchased:
I intend to review these at a later date, so I won't dedicate time to discussing them here
- A.True Real Black Tea True Active CC cushion in 01
- A.True Violet Petal Black Tea Hydrating Moisturizer
- A.True Real Black Tea True Active Mask (x3)
Free Samples:
- Kicho Sheep Oil Cream
- Kicho Phyto Natural Refreshing Toner
- Kicho Phyto Natural Total Essence
- Cosrx Advanced Snail all-in-one Cream
- Cosrx Aloe Vera oil-free Moisture Cream
- Cosrx Natural BHA Skin Returning Emulsion
- A.True Violet Petal Black Tea Hydrating Toner
- A.True Black Tea All Day Aqua Sun Gel
- A.True White Snow Tea Brilliant Aurora Cream
- A.True Darjeeling Black Tea First Anti-Wrinkle Cream
Overall:
The prices were reasonable, the shipping was fast, the packaging perfect, and the samples plentiful. What more could you ask for from a K-Beauty retailer? Cupidrop doesn't have a huge selection at the moment, but what they have is good quality and hopefully they will expand their product offerings in the future. Would I buy from them again? Yes, yes, and YES! They have officially become my favorite US-based shop for skincare products, no doubts about that.
*I have no affiliation with Cupidrop and I paid for all this stuff myself*
Monday, July 6, 2015
Being silly
So I'm not that good at doing makeup. I used to be fairly decent, but recently I've fallen out of practice. So the other day I decided to be silly and play with eyeshadows. Here are some pictures from my instagram of what resulted. All products used from Urban Decay.
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| Yay I'm bloated from my IBS! -_-" |
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