Wednesday, December 31, 2014

Coconut Pack Review

Coconut infused skin cleansers have been around for many years. Coconut milk cleansers, coconut cream cleaners, coconut water cleansers, as well as many other variations. Not to mention the option of using pure coconut oil as cleansing oil. I've tried some of these in the past and found some to be pretty decent cleansers, but didn't find any to be all that unique. 

With the recent rising popularity of coconut oil for health and skin benefits, I opted to try a coconut face soap called Coconut Pack from a Korean company called Boutique Bebe. What's interesting about this face cleanser is that it can be used as a cleanser as well as a face pack ("pack" meaning facial mask). 

This is a product that's been highly reviewed by Korean bloggers. I've seen many impressive before and after photos, and I haven't come across a single negative review! However, I've noticed that most of these over zealous positive blog reviews are sponsored reviews. So I didn't take these raving reviews too literally, nevertheless, they did amp up my expectations...


This product claims to: treat blackheads, whiteheads, dry flakes, and enlarged pores without drying out the skin to give a smooth and even skin texture. And all this without harmful additives such as parabens, color/dye, mineral oil, animal oil/fat, or silicon. 

Main/active ingredients are: extra virgin coconut oil, organic coconut oil, organic extra virgin olive oil, organic argan oil, and organic shea butter. 

Other interesting ingredients are: low molecular weight hyaluronic acid powder, rice bran oil, natural vitamin E, olive butter, nano-EGF, FGF, marine collagen powder, snail slime extract, propolis, Coenzyme Q10, arbutin, and salicylic acid.

Monday, November 3, 2014

Sisley Black Rose Precious Face Oil & Cream Mask Review




Black Rose Precious Face Oil
Sisley's first face oil promises to radiantly revitalise the skin with concentrated active ingredients including black rose extract as well as Bulgarian rose and magnolia. Black roses are indeed 'precious,' as they only grow in Turkey. Black rose extract is known to soothe and firm the skin, although I'm not too sure how more effective it is compared to regular rose extract. And currently, Sisley seems to be the only well known brand that uses black rose extract.

Here are the active ingredients listed by Sisley:
Plum oil (rich in omega 6): strengthens the barrier function and brings comfort and suppleness to the skin
Camelina oil (rich in omega 3 and 6): nourishes, soothes and preserves the skin's lipid balance
Phytosqualane: nourishes, moisturizes and strengthens the skin's protective film
Natural Tocopherols: help to combat free radicals
Unsaponifiables of avocado: regenerate, repair, nourish, soothe
Padina pavonica: stimulates synthesis of glycosaminoglycans
Black Rose extract: moisturizes and softens
Bulgarian Rose essential oil: tones
Magnolia essential oil: soothes
Geranium essential oil: purifies



Black Rose Cream Mask
This mask promises "instant youth" by hydrating, plumping, lifting, and revitalizing the skin within 10-15 minutes. It's infused with powerful vitamins and plant components to fight stressed skin for more youthful and refreshed skin. 

Here are the active ingredients listed by Sisley:
Black Rose: smoothing, anti-free radicals
Alkekengi Calyx Extract: stimulates the synthesis of collagen fibers
Padina Pavonica: promotes the synthesis of glycoaminoglycans
Vitamin E Acetate: anti-free radicals
Red Vine: promotes radiance
Chlorella: revitalizes
Essential Oil of Geranium: contains stimulating properties
Great Mullen: protects and soothes
Shea Butter: nourishes, heals, soothes, softens, and protects
Provitamin B5: softens and hydrates
Essential Oils of Rose and Magnolia: soothes
Vegetable Glycerin: hydrates
Phytosqualane: emollient and hydrates



To purchase Sisley Paris Black Rose Precious Face Oil and Sisley Paris Black Rose Cream Mask, check out NORDSTROM for worldwide shipping.



Lisa

Thursday, October 30, 2014

TONYMOLY BCDation All Master Review


TONYMOLY recently (September 2014) released a new foundation.  Well, it's not exactly new per se; it's an updated and 'improved' version of BCDation now called BCDation All Master. I purchased this on a whim not knowing much about the original BCDation. The salesperson telling me that this is TONYMOLY's newest best product that's endorsed by 4MINUTE's Hyuna caught my interest.


This product offers anti-wrinkle, whitening, and UV protection (SPF30++); standard benefits of many BB creams. In addition, TONYMOLY BCDation All Master promises to tone-up your skin (as in brighten), and even-out your skin tone with lightweight coverage thats long-lasting (up to 24 hours). It also claims to lift and volumize the skin as well as provide lasting moisturising effect (up to 48 hours). All this with no harmful ingredients thats safe and effective for all skin types and tones! It 'sounds' pretty amazing...


Im not a big believer of one-for-all type of products: I like variations of products that I can choose from. Besides the irrational simplemindedness of "one color for all skin tones" concept, I havent come across many base products that works well on both ends of skin type spectrum (oily/dry). So as much as I was intrigued the "BB + CC + Foundation = BCDation" concept, I had my doubts, but still, I had my hopes up.



This is a lightweight formula compared to typical BB creams, but not as light in texture as most CC creams, and the coverage is similar to that of medium coverage foundations. It comes in only one color (the old BCDation came in two shades).  This one color does NOT suit all skin tones. But it does work on many skin tones: fair-light-beige-medium-slightly tan and everyone in between. It won't look natural for porcelain-fair, olive-tanned or darker skin tones.

At first, I thought this would be too light for my current skin tone (MAC NC25-30ish, light/med), but it actually gave me a natural yet brightened “tone-up” color that complemented my skin tone well (given few minutes after the application for the product color to ‘adjust'). But, if I try to go past medium for full coverage, it does make me look a little ghastly.


I did find that it ‘somewhat’ plumps up the skin, but it wasn’t significantly noticeable or lasting. Also, it wasn’t moisturising for my skin. My skin type is currently normal to bit on the dry side. It felt pretty matte and drying on skin at first; so much so that I felt setting powder may be unnecessary. And it accentuated every type of dryness I had on my skin; even in areas I didn't know about! It also seemed to make pores more visible. After an hour or so, the dryness did go away somewhat, and my t-zone appeared slightly oily. My first few uses of this product were definitely not positive.


I did find a way to make this product work better for me: I exfoliated my skin with a gentle powder enzyme product (Amore Pacific Treatment Enzyme Peel) followed by a hydrating face mask (TONLYMOLY Pureness100 Hyaluronic Acid Mask Sheet) the night before, and also throughly moisturised my skin prior to application in the morning by using a face oil (Sisley  Black Rose Precious Face Oil), and a heavy duty moisturiser (Creme De La Mer). 

Here's the best result I got with this product:

1. Before application: just face oil and moisturizer on face.



2. During application: one light layer of TONYMOLY BCDation.



3. After application: extra applications in areas where more coverage was needed, and finished with light translucent finishing powder and some bronzer on sides of face.


I doubt 4MINUTE's Hyuna actually uses TONYMOLY BCDation in her daily life, and if she does, she must already have perfect skin! My skin is far from perfect, and to make this product work for me, I had to try to make my skin to be close to perfect as possible. I found it to be too much of a hassle. Given that my skin type is more on the dry side, I do expect many base products to feel drying on my skin. But this product actually claims to moisturise the skin for 48 hours: so not true! It was drying from the first application. And after 1-2 hours, my skin appeared oily on the surface but I can still feel the dryness underneath.

TONYMOLY BCDation All Master's claim of long lasting finish of up to 24 hours also fell short: after about 3 hours (4-5 hours when I use finishing powder on top), the once evenly applied BCDation All Master looked like a mess! Some of it had shifted around on top of my skin; some spots looked oily with barely any product left on the skin; while some parts appeared dry. This tend to happen when I use products that are not suitable for my skin type: so when I use products that aren't moisturising enough, my skin starts to produce more oil in certain areas to account for lack of moisture. This product has absolutely has no ability to balance different skin types. So much for one-for-all skin type product...

I'm not completely hating on this product. I think it would be a great product for someone with evenly balanced normal skin type (I don't know how many of you guys are out there but I'm super jealous!) It does give a decent coverage with lightweight finish, and it's best applied with a brush or sponge applicator for medium coverage.

In my opinion, TONYMOLY BCDation would be a bad choice for dry or combination skin types, or anyone with uneven skin texture. It would be an OK product for oily skin types if you're prepare to touch up with setting powder every couple of hours. It's best suited for normal skin types, but don't expect the finish to last 24 hours as advertised by TONYMOLY. 

It was disappointing how many of the product's claims fell short, especially since I've read positive reviews about the original BCDation. I'll still use this from time to time; only on days after a facial or on those rare occasions when I'm having 'a good skin day.'


TONYMOLY BCDation All Master can be purchased online from from GMarket or Amazon



Lisa

Sunday, October 5, 2014

CHANEL Vitaumiere Losse Powder Foundation & BOBBI BROWN Skin Weightless Powder Foundation

Chanel Vitalumiere Loose Powder Foundation (SPF 15)
(released in Sept 2014)

This is the newest powder foundation from Chanel's Vitalumiere line. It comes in a clever mess-free shifter jar with the cutest mini kabuki brush. It comes in five shades and offers up to medium to "somewhat" full coverage when applied multiple times with a kabuki brush. A light to medium coverage can be achieved with a regular powder brush. It gives a beautiful semi-matte satiny finish that looks more luminescent after an hour or two of the application. 


 Bobbi Brown Skin Weightless Powder Foundation
(released in Sept 2014)
This is a pressed in powder foundation unlike others out there. It's been blended with liquid and powder foundation and baked for 12 hours to give a soft to touch cashmere-like texture. It comes in 20 shades: a lot more precise colour choices than Chanel. Medium to full coverage can be achieved by using the sponge that's provided, and sheer light coverage with a regular powder brush.  It gives a natural skin like finish.


For more detailed review, please watch the review video below:


Here are some purchase options for both products.

From Nordstrom (worldwide shipping):

From SEPHORA:

From Amazon:
(This link is for the shade warm sand but same seller has other shades available)

 From Boots:

From Chanel online:


Let me know if you have questions about these products!



Lisa

Tuesday, September 2, 2014

August Favorites ♡



Products I've been using in August are:
Hourglass Femme Rouge Velvet Creme Lipstick in Muse
Dior Dior Addict Extreme Lipstick in Pink Icon 366
Giorgio Armani Eyes to Kill Mascara
Majolica Majorca Lash Bone Black Fiber in Mascara Base
Lush Angels on Bare Skin
Innisfree Super Volcanic Pore Clay Mask
Piccasso False Lashes
Klorane Gentle Dry Shampoo with Oat Milk
Ma Cherie Perfect Shower Hair Styling Mist

Click HERE for my review of Innisfree Super Volcanic Pore Clay Mask & Green Persimmon Pore Toner to find out how to safely treat clogged and enlarged pores and also to remove blackheads without physical extraction.

Click HERE to find out about my experience of the Piccasso event and review of their false lashes AND get 5% coupon code for all your purchases.



Lisa

Saturday, August 30, 2014

How To Treat Clogged and Enlarged Pores


Find out how I use Innisfree Super Volcanic Pore Clay Mask and Green Persimmon Pore Toner to deal with various pore problems such as clogged and enlarged pores as well as getting rid of blackheads safely without physical extraction!



Products used in this video (purchase option and more info):
Innisfree Super Volcanic Pore Clay Mask
Innisfree Green Persimmon Pore Toner



xoxo
Lisa
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