I’d like my lip balms in a seashell please~

May is supposed to be sunny, springy and flowery…. but of course since it’s New England, it’s grey and rainy and cold. Well, I can’t change the weather, but I can add a dose of sunny beachy weather to my vanity. I saw a picture of beauty products in a seashell somewhere long ago and has been wanting something like that ever since. There were plenty of seashell shaped containers, but I want something made from real seashells. So when I stumbled upon Organic Island, I went for it.

When I opened the box, I was greeted with a nice fabric drawstring bag for each of the seashell lip balms. I don’t know why it says shelllipbalm.com since it doesn’t exist and I got the lip balms from organicisland.com.au. But the brand is legit so it might just be their old site or something. Whatever, seashell lip balms! Straight from sunny Australia!

Speed Review, Feburary Edition. And GlamGlow GravityMud!

Maybe it’s a weird goal, but I thought it would be cool to say that I have tried every single product of a brand. I was trying to do that with Tatcha and GlamGlow. I’m close to doing that with Tatcha but I’ve given up on GlamGlow. The only product I love was the GlamGlow Youthmud (got 2 backups) and am really not interested in the array of new lip products. But of COURSE they come out with a silver peel-off mask, and of course I have to try it.
The moment the jar was opened, I could smell the strong scent of pina colada (my face was 1ft away and I could smell it clearly). It looks shimmery white in the jar but becomes shinier and more silver as it dries on the skin. It’s thick and gooey like other peel off masks, and dries down to a nice film that Isn’t super tight/drying but peels off in one piece. After peeling it off, it left the skin feel a bit tacky? Rubbery? Firm I suppose? I used it twice but don’t see/feel any lasting effect. I mean I feel like it did good things, but it’s barely noticeable and you need generous amount each time so $69 is overpriced. my skin feel hydrated but I honestly can’t tell how it’s different than Boscia white or Valentia. 

Anyways, my skin feels super dry/irritated this month but I have too many full size masks, so the samples I went through are all about moisturizer and eye creams!

Valentia Mask and Eye Cream

With winter still in full swing, I’ve been loading up on all my moisturizing products (gentle cleanser, hydrating masks, hydrating toner, hydrating essence, eye cream, face cream etc). I’m not very fond of the Algenist eye cream I’m currently using and is looking around for some better ones when I came upon Valentia offering their Ultra Plumping Hydration Mask and True Glow Eye Cream for review. Valentia uses natural ingredients, mostly organic and plant derived, which sounds like what I’m looking for. Let’s hope the products work as well as they sound. Disclaimer: Whether a product was provided for free or bought by me have no influence on my opinion of the product.

The ingredients consist of some basics such as aloe vera, glycerin, vitamin E etc and some great ones such as hyaluronic acid, silk protein and CoQ10, which are not only moisturizing but also great for anti-aging. While I don’t have wrinkles or mature skin yet, I’m starting to notice fine lines when I smile and light pigmentation/spots on my cheeks, so these ingredients are right up my alley.

Speed Review, January Edition. And Spring Collection Swatches

There were so many beautiful powders this year, from Burberry’s lace patterned highlighter to YSL’s Boho Stone collection. I couldn’t resist swatching the array of beautiful Dior Spring collection laid out in front of me while at Nordstrom. The little floral patterns on the blush and eyeshadow powder didn’t go away in one swatch as I had feared. Aside from the blush, all the powders are pretty shimmery. I posted a little video on Instagram to better show the shimmer.

They didn’t have a lot of fallout, and the pigmentation of the powder is medium. The blush provides a natural, soft wash of color. The eyeshadows are pigmented enough so you can distinguish between the yellow, green and blue but sheer enough to not look childish or costume-y. The eye pencils are creamy and pigmented, they are easy to apply with pretty good staying power after it sets.

I also couldn’t resist swatching the Chanel Sunkissed Ribbon blush. The blush itself is smaller than the palm of my hand, so you can’t realistically pick out individual colors to use. The powder is soft, pigmented and does provide a very flattering warm dusty rose blush. While the colorblock stays, the ribbon pattern goes away fairly quickly. If you are looking for the pink/white pearl highlighter, it is currently available on Chanel website and Nordstrom.com.

However, I was not in luck since the stores didn’t have what I wanted. And my skin has been so dry it’s drinking up skincare like a sponge, so I’ve been pretty much dousing it with oil. It’s amazing I’m not a grease ball and haven’t had a breakout yet *knocks on wood*. I don’t want to see any oil for at least a month….. oh who am I kidding, I’ll probably start playing with them again next week. Anyways, onto the speed reviews…

Speed Review, November Edition. L’Oreal Go 360 Clean

Can you believe it’s December already? Time for last-minute crunch at work and being spammed by holiday discounts and sets everywhere. Since I absolutely hate having fancy skincare going to waste, it’s also time to organize my stash. I spent the weekend taking out ALL of my skincare, and I mean all, from cheap free hotel thing neglected in the corner of bathroom to fancy holiday sets that I haven’t opened yet. I categorized them according to season (lightweight gels, lotions and oil control stuff for summer, creams and hydrating masks for winter etc) as well as checked the expiration date on everything. Moisturizers and serums I no longer care for becomes body lotion, facial cleansers I don’t like becomes hand soap, and masks have been generously applied from the face down to my neck and decollatege. I don’t have expiring toners, so I’ve been making good progress.

But there’s one cleanser that I’ve forgotten that I do like. L’Oreal Go 360 Clean Deep Facial Cleanser. I mean, it’s just a normal gel cleanser that foams up, nothing special and a little drying on my combination skin (more appropriate for oily skin). However! I love using it as a brush cleanser, the reason being the little silicone pad it came with. As much as I like using pretty brushes, I don’t enjoy standing at the sink forever cleaning them. Depending on the products used and when you last cleaned, it can be difficult to get all the makeup out of the brushes.

The little silicone pad is AMAZING at getting the stubborn makeup out! It helps to prevent makeup stains and makes washing brushes faster and easier. I put some L’Oreal cleanser in my palm, dab my wet/damp brushes in it, then swirl on the silicone pad a few times. Voila! 5-10 second is all it needs most of the time, a bit longer for getting cream and liquid products out (foundation, concealer, lip color etc) but so much faster than just using fingers! The cleanser and pad are pretty much my brush cleaning kit and only cost ~$6 ish. The pad is a bit too small for fluffy face brushes, so if you like how it works then you can splurge for the larger silicone Brush Cleaning Glove or Mat from Sigma. All my friends who got them loves them, but I’d rather spend money on pretty things so the little cheap silicone pad works plenty well for me.

ps. Don’t forget to enter the giveaway! Even if you are not interested in the products, a comment on how you like the blog so far is appreciated! Thanks!

As for the speed review for the month, I’ve been focusing on my stash of packet samples, so here’s the review for the assortment of things I tried.

Tatcha Koyo Fall Beauty Set Review

In general, makeup products have way prettier packaging than skincare. There’s nothing wrong with a really good skincare product in a clinical, simple packaging, but pretty packaging is always a plus and makes the products a pleasure to use. Tatcha went a step above that. I like how the order slip is printed on pretty shimmery white paper and always comes with a short handwritten message. I like how each product is carefully packaged with a cute story and clear instructions. I also like how they packaged the Koyo Fall Beauty Set in a simple wooden box wrapped with thick, textured washi paper with autumn leaves embossed onto it, and finished with a gold string tie.

Skincares usually don’t look as pretty as others when given as gifts. I mean, it’s just a bunch of jars in a cardboard box most of the time. But the presentation of this gift set really makes it feel like a thoughtful gift and that there’s something truly special inside.

So far I’ve loved all the Tatcha products I’ve tried. The Rice Enzyme Powder and the Camellia Cleansing Oil are both skincare stables for me. Yes, Tatcha is pretty expensive, but they often have GWP if you subscribe to the mailing list, no minimum for free shipping and you can often find vouchers on Ruelala or Gilt City that gives you up to 40% off. With the discount, it is totally worth the price, and did I mention how beautiful this gift set is?

Speed Review, October Edition. Healthy oil for food/skincare?

In terms of healthy oils for both skincare and cooking, grapeseed oil has become a strong contender along with coconut oil and olive oil. I find coconut oil and olive oil too heavy for my preference, both in food and as skincare, so I’ve been using grapeseed oil a lot. It is much lighter, similar to vegetable oil, tasteless and with a higher smoking point. When I bake with it, the cakes are fluffier since the oil is not heavy, and it works fine when moisturizing the skin as well. However, grapeseed oil may not be as amazingly better than other oil as I thought. While it does contain a lot of vitamin E, it also contains a high amount of the bad fat and the processing takes away some of the benefits as well. You can read more about it here, here and here.

Turns out, grapeseed oil may be more beneficial applied topically than consumed, but it would be nice to have a healthy lightweight oil that I cook with. After I researched and wrote the post on avocado in skincare, I became aware of avocado oil and got myself a bottle. It didn’t have a scent and is about as lightweight as grapeseed oil. It have a high smoking point and contains a lot of vitamin E, and it also helps with absorption of other vitamins and minerals. It moisturized well without being heavy on my combination skin. But it’s not lightweight either (and is expensive) so I think I prefer cooking with it more. If you don’t mind the price and have dry skin or hair, this is a great oil to use.

Due to this and that, my speed review for October empties end up being late. It’s a mixture of this and that and, well, read on for the reviews if you are interested.

Skincare Journal, September. Tony Moly

In terms of fun skincare trinkets, Japan and Korea’s got plenty of them. Some of them are kind of gimmicky and are all packaging, while others have interesting packaging AND pretty good products inside. I first got an assortment of TonyMoly patch masks on a whim but surprisingly fell in love with the Panda’s Dream eye patch. Then I ventured into some face masks, hand creams, and now more eye/lips products. Without further ado, let’s move onto the reviews.

TonyMoly Panda’s Dream So Cool Eye Stick – this is the blue one, not to be confused with the brightening stick which is white. This is more of a skincare product and feels cooling and moisturizing on the skin. While it does sink in fast, it flakes if you apply generously (swiping over the area 5 or 6 times). It feels better than Boscia, which have more of a cooling sensation and is more solid, so it tugs a bit on the skin. If you want a cute trinket that feels nice and have nice ingredient, this is nice to pick up. But if you are actually looking for something hydrating on-the-go for your eyes, look for a rollerball/elsewhere.

TonyMoly Bbo Bbo Lip Balm in Honey – the balm is colorless and comes in a shiny plastic lip shaped container. I got the honey scented one, which actually smells like honey. It is a lightweight salve that moisturizes without leaving a film. It doesn’t feel too thick/greasy on lips so you can wear it during the day but it doesn’t have SPF so I use it at night. It’s moisturizing but probably not enough for those with severely dry lips.

TonyMoly Mini Blueberry Lip Balm – the balm comes in a cute little plastic blueberry container. It smells like sweet blueberry juice, and have a thin/lightweight balm consistency. While it looks red in the pot, it gives a very sheer pink tint that reminds me of Fresh Sugar Lip Treatment SPF15 in Rose, but without the SPF. It is not as hydrating as Fresh, so I would recommend it if you are looking for a fun lip product but don’t have super dry lips.

TonyMoly’s got lots of fun stuff. I would buy the sheet masks and eye masks again, but the rest (eye stick, cheek/mustache mask, hand cream, balms) are average products more for the cute factor. The ingredients are nice and it’s not that overpriced. They would make good stocking stuffers or little gifts but since I already bought them once, I will keep the container and won’t buy again. Now then, onto the skincare journal for the month…

Speed Review, August Edition. Don’t forget your hands!

If you visit this blog, obviously you care about your skin on your face, but do you know that neck and hands are the next in showing signs of aging? Having a flawless face but wrinkly neck and hands is not a good look. My neck don’t need much moisturizer but I usually extend my cleansing, toning and serum step down to my chest whenever I can. As for hands, since you wash it several times a day (I hope), keeping it moisturized is very important. While I usually just use leftover face product or body lotion, I couldn’t resist all the cute hand creams available as I’m delve into Korean skincare. Sure, you can get L’occitane shea butter hand cream or Bliss hand cream in those bland boring tubes, but why do that when you can have this:

Ok fine, they are not quite as practical to carry in a purse due to size, but they would look so cute on a desk! Keep them on your desk to brighten up your day, gift them to kids/teenagers who have just started learning to take care of their skin, or the apple one at least is great for a small teacher’s gift. But is it all packaging? It’s true that some of them (TonyMoly Tangerine *cough*) are filled with silicone and cheap oil just like the $2 drugstore ones but with more expensive packaging. However! There are some with good ingredients worthy of substituting the high end ones.

THEFACESHOP Lovely Mix Mini Pet Perfume Hand Cream – this is a lightweight cream with a mild powdery floral scent. It moisturizes well and sinks into the skin fast. Because it is lightweight, it won’t be enough if you have very dry hand or is looking for something for winter. The ingredients list does contain some shea butter, but it was listed behind silicone and other stuff. It’s more of a normal drugstore cream in pretty packaging

TonyMoly Apple Hand Cream – this is a great hand cream for normal use. It’s a rich cream that moisturizes well due to shea butter, but is very emollient so it doesn’t feel heavy or thick. It’s also got fruit extract to help soften and brighten (read: even out skin tone) the hand. It also smells just like a fresh apple, like if you take a bite out of a red apple and sniff it, this is what it smells like.

TonyMoly Panda’s Dream White Hand Cream– I initially got it because I love panda, but it is actually comparable to L’occitane shea butter hand cream. Shea butter is the 2nd ingredient for this hand cream, and it feel just as thick as L’occitane with the same clean floral fresh scent. It feels like a thick body butter and does take a few seconds to sink in completely, so I like to use it mostly at night before bed. Do not worry about the brightening/whitening part, your hand will not be a shade lighter than your arm after using this (I guess it’s suppose to refer to prevent dark age spot or something? Otherwise I see/feel no whitening). There is also a face moisturizer from TonyMoly with the same packaging, but from the ingredients list it seems to be more of a drugstore quality, a fun basic moisturizer.

There are other variety of animals and fruit packaging for the hand cream from THEFACESHOP and TonyMoly. You can always buy it for the packaging and put your favorite cream in it after use, but if you are buying for the hand cream, different packaging contains different hand cream! I would recommend apple for normal use, and panda for really dry skin or winter. I don’t know why they keep going in and out of stock, but you can find these and many other cute ones on kollectionk, SokoGlam, UrbanOutfitter and Sephora.

While I took several pretty pictures of hand cream, the picture of the empties for this month is nowhere to be found and I’ve already took them to Origins for recycle by the time I put together this post, so, the speed review will be pictureless this time. =/

Lacy Eye Masks! Masquerade~~~

Paper faces on parade~~~Masquerade! ~~~ Every face a different shade~~~~

Ok, so this is not that type of eye masks. They look pretty enough for a masquerade, but I doubt they can hide any part of your identity and they don’t really stay if you dance. Most sheet masks for eyes are strips that you put under your eyes. These masks are like sexy super hero masks, where you have pretty lace surrounded by hydrating gel. I saw them on Sokoglam and couldn’t resist getting some to try.

Aren’t they pretty??? They are not the sheet masks that will scare your cat, significant others, or the flight attendant when you travel. These masks are the ones almost pretty enough to wear for an evening out (except of course, you should take off make up and cleanse before wearing them for skincare benefit). The black one is Glam Rock Adacadabra Mask from Too Cool for School, and the white one is Radiant Lace Hydrogel Eye Patch from Benila Co. Interested? read on for reviews…