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asian cosmetics beauty BNTnews PR Sample review

Review: Catalina Geo Color Capsule Make Up Base

25. August 2015

The Catalina Geo Color Capsule Make Up Base, or also known as I-MIIX Magic Capsule Silky Make Up Base, is not only prettily designed but also contains visible color capsules that contain a moisturizing and makeup-preserving essence. This is the last item for BNTnews in August, and funnily I saw that the packaging the BNT girls received was different. Some received the same packaging like I did, which is named I-MIIX and some received the packaging named Catalina Geo. I don’t know if one is the old version and the other a new one though.

CatalinaGeo is a Korean brand, with quite some sub-brands. One of these is Lamy Cosmetics, of which I reviewed the Lafine Vegetable Deep Cleansing Cream yesterday. Catalina Geo imports their products into 12 countries, so if you have a look at their official page you might check out if their products are available in your country, too. Europe is not included or example, but US, Australia and a bunch of Asian countries are included. The packaging of the Catalina Geo Color Capsule Make Up Base is quite girly and magical, with ornamental design and a purple color.

The cardboard box contains Korean and English description and the ingredients are listed on the cardboard box, too. You can find them on >>COSDNA here<<. It unfortunately contains triethanolamine and some acne triggers. If you have sensitive skin you should check out the single ingredients before using it. The description says that it does not contain oil, in order to be safe to use for sensitive skin types, but there is also mineral oil included here, which I would not recommend to use as primer for sensitive skin types.

The Catalina Geo Color Capsule Make Up Base comes in a 35 ml pump bottle. You can see the white colored pearls inside a clear liquid through the bottle. Apart from the white color there are other colors available, too. There are five colors in total: purple, green, pink, blue, and white. This Make Up Base fixes skin’s tone, protects from UV rays and improves skin’s natural color.

In order to use the Catalina Geo Color Capsule Make Up Base you have to shake it first. One pump is enough to cover my face. The pump crushes the pearls and you will receive a white colored mixture of the capsules and the clear liquid. The more you shake before you pump, the better the two phases will combine. After comparing it on my face before and after using it, I must say that I do not see much difference. The skin looks a bit brighter, but the moisture level and the dewiness stays the same compared to my usual skincare routine. It does not make lines disappear, nor does it reduce the appearance of pores. I find primers like the Lailly 7 Second Make-Up Booster do have proven as better suitable primers compared to the Catalina Geo Color Capsule Make Up Base. I didn’t see any differences in the longlivity of my make-up either.

Catalina Geo Color Capsule Make Up Base is a pretty designed capsule make up base, but out of the four products I received from BNTnews in August this is my least favorite. I simply cannot see any major differences this base provides. Maybe it doesn’t work with my skincare routine, or with my skin type, I’m not sure. I would also love to know if any of the other color capsules are better suited for my skin. Here are the official descriptions for the product: worldwide an australian. The price of 45 AU$ (38 US$) is quite high in my opinion, so I would not repurchase it personally.

This product was provided to me by BNTnews for reviewing. Don’t forget to visit the other BNTGirls Kim, Bella, Mary, Celine, Alene, Joanne, Chermaine, ,Mitha, and Blair and check out their reviews for the August BNT Beauty Box. And visit BNTnews for the latest Korean news and trends:

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Just as a short reminder: All products mentioned and reviewed on this blog are of my personal opinions. This product here was sent to me for reviewing purpose by http://www.bntnews.co.uk/ which doesn’t influence me in providing my honest opinion on the products.

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asian cosmetics beauty BNTnews PR Sample review

Review: Lafine Vegetable Deep Cleansing Cream

24. August 2015

Lafine Vegetable Deep Cleansing Cream is another product which was provided for August from BNTnews. There are so many diferent kinds of cleansers, like foam, water, gel, oil, cream or balm/sherbet type ones that it is often not easy to decide which one is the favorite one to use. I usually like the double cleansing method, where you first remove your makeup with one heavy cleanser and then use a lighter cleanser for getting rid of additional oils and wastes on the skin. In the morning on the other hand I only use water, or a light cleanser which doesn’t irritate the skin too much. The Lafine Vegetable Deep Cleansing Cream is suited for both times of the day in my opinion.

Lafine is the first brand of Lamy Cosmetics, a Korean Cosmetics Company which is part of CatalinaGeo. Catalina Geo imports their products into 12 countries, so if you have a look at their official page you might check out if their products are available in your country, too. Europe is not included or example, but US, Australia and a bunch of asian countries are included. The Lafine Vegetable line contains 3 different products: Lafine Vegetable Deep Cleansing Cream, Lafine Vegetable Firming Massage Cream, and Lafine Vegetable Foam Cleanser. There are two different versions of the packaging, an old one, which looks lovely and is covered with a vegetable print illustration all over (I think this one is also the one which is imported to other countries), and a simple one, which I show you here. The Lafine Vegetable Deep Cleansing Cream comes in a cardboard box showing pictures of the different vegetables which are the ingredients in this cleansing cream. The main color of this product is green.

The cardboard box has English and Korean descriptions, directions and ingredient list written on it. The ingredients are added to >>COSDNA here<<. This cream is made of five skin-friendly vegetables, which are cucumber, tomato, parsley, water parsley, and carrot. Moreover, this cleansing cream contains granules for a soft and deep cleansing. It is supposed to efficiently eliminate makeup residues and wastes and leave a soft and pleasant vegetable fragrance on skin. Apart from the vegetable extracts included here, there are also some other ingredients, which are more doubtful like Mineral Oil, Triethanolamine, and BHT. If you know about any reactions to these ingredients I would not recommend you to use this product. I didn’t have any negative experience with my skin so far. The cream is free from paraben, benzophenone, talc, animal oil, and triclosan, which is positive. It is not advised to be used for your eyes.

Lafine Vegetable Deep Cleansing Cream comes in a simple, green plastic jar containing 200 ml of product. There is a plastic separator between the lid, were you will find a plastic spatula. I was very happy to see that, sine the last cleansing creams I tried never had any spoon or spatula included.

The Lafine Vegetable Deep Cleansing Cream has a white color and contains small green and red colored grains. These granules disolve while massaging the cream on your skin. In order to use the cleansing cream you apply a good amount of the cleansing cream on your face and massage it until the grains are melted away and the makeup starts to dissolve. Then you wipe of the cream with a tissue and either rinse the residue with lukewarm water or follow by your foam cleanser. the Lafine Vegetable Deep Cleansing Cream has a pleasant cucumber scent which is really lovely and refreshing, too.

The cleansing performance of the Lafine Vegetable Deep Cleansing Cream is good, too. Testing it on my arm below, you see that it removes all kind of different makeup clearly. It makes the skin feel not dry at all, but feels like applying a cream already. If you do not like the residue it will be removed after using a second cleanser. Using water the skin will keep the moisturized feeling. The pH of this cleansing cream lies at pH 5, which will be good news for some of you on the search for low pH cleansers.

Lafine Vegetable Deep Cleansing Cream has surely some ingredients, which I don’t like too much, nevertheless I like using it! The cucumber scent is refreshing and lovely, and for a cleanser it has a perfect pH of 5 and works nicely in dissolving all different kinds of makeup. I love the feeling it leaves on the skin, since it makes it feel like you already have used some moisturizing products afterwards. If you don’t like that feeling the residue can be easily removed with lukewarm water or with your second (foam) cleanser. The version I reviewed here is a new version which has been produced this year and therefore it is still hard to find online (and the old version is out of stock), but I guess it will be available more easily in some time. Here is the official description of the product on >>CatalinaGeo<<.

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Just as a short reminder: All products mentioned and reviewed on this blog are of my personal opinions. This product here was sent to me for reviewing purpose by http://www.bntnews.co.uk/ which doesn’t influence me in providing my honest opinion on the products.

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asian cosmetics beauty BNTnews PR Sample review

Review: O’melon Chameleon Essence Queen CC Cushion

23. August 2015

I’m always excited when trying new Korean brands I didn’t know before, like the O’melon Chameleon Essence Queen CC Cushion. Did you hear of that brand already? It was my highlight of the August BNTnews beauty box (two reviews are still to be made the next days).

O’melon is a Korean cosmetic brand, which doesn’t have a lot of popularity outside Korea, as it seems. For me it was the first time I heard of this brand. Moreover, the product I’m reviewing here is a CC cushion, which I’m always very curious to try. I never thought I would have more than one cushion foundation, but as time proceeds my collection seems to grow :D The O’melon Chameleon Essence Queen CC Cushion first of all comes in a very luxurious and pretty packaging. Even the cardboard box the cushion compact comes in is made of reflecting color-changing paper, which has a rainbowish shade depending on the light. Unfortunately, the beauty of such packaging is hard to capture for me in images, so you will mostly see pink/purple colors :D This color changing material used for the packaging fits perfectly to the name of the product, since a chameleon can adjust its color towards its environment.

The O’melon Chameleon Essence Queen CC Cushion is a CC cream in a cushion compact, with SPF 45 PA+++. The packaging description is in Korean only, apart from the ingredients, which are luckily written in English on the side of the cardboardbox. I added the ingredients to COSDNA and the used components are safe to use. Moreover, this is the first time I saw the ingredients of a CC/BB cream which contains a whole bunch of amino acids. Apart from the amino acids there are various plant extracts included, hyaluronic acid, pearl extract, collagen, but also alcohol.

The beautiful cardboard box contains an even more beautiful cushion compact, seated on a velvet-y coated plastic holder in classic red. The compact has a very pretty golden lid with sparkling dots, which reflect the light in different colors, too.

The O’melon Chameleon Essence Queen CC Cushion contains 15 g of product and has a shelf-life of 12 months after opening. I couldn’t find a price, but I guess it will be more expensive than Missha Cushion for example. A replacement puff is included inside the cardboard box, too.

The shade I received is called #11 Cover Beige and like all the other cushion compacts you will have a container with the CC cream insde the pact and a mirror in the lid. The puff applicator sits on top of a plastic lid which keeps the CC cream inside from drying. cushion foundations have a characteristic cushion sponge inside this container, which is soaked with the CC/BB cream or foundation.

So what is so special about the O’melon Chameleon Essence Queen CC Cushion? This 3-shade CC cushion is supposed to flaunt perfect waterproof coverage. The three shades contained are beige (50%), white (25%), and pink (25%). The different colors have each their own purpose:

Beige: Covers dull tone, freckles, blemishes and pimples.

White: Contains various plant extracts to help complete smooth and natural makeup and preserve it.

Pink: Contains rose essence for a healthy and bright complexion.

The colors show off on the sponge in a pretty swirl and the cushion reminds me a bit of the Elishacoy Pink Blooming Cushion.

The O’melon Chameleon Essence Queen CC Cushion is also equipped with a vegetal cooling essence to sooth heated skin and treat wrinkles while boosting elasticity and thus it is advertised for summer use. Since it has a satin finish it does not look greasy on the face for most of the day. actually, I’m surprised how long lasting this cushion is. after a whole da it gets a bit flaky around my chin, but when reapplied over the area it looks great again. While patting the three colors on your face they start to blend with each other, since the colors are not pre-mixed as you can see below. This can be a bit tricky because in order to have all the three colors you have to push the puff on the sponge in a way you will get all colors. The CC cream feels cool on the skin, like advertised. If it treats wrinkles and boosts elasticity I cannot say. I didn’t feel any changes. The shade is similar to other Korean shade 21 BB/CC creams. It is a bit lighter than my skintone at the moment, but it is still wearable. The coverage is good, too. It covers for example my birth mask at the corner of my mouth nicely. Rednesses of the skin are evened out, too.

Altogether, I’m positively surprised by O’melon Chameleon Essence Queen CC Cushion. I really do like the packaging design and the idea of having a CC cushion with skincare components. The three colors of the O’melon Chameleon Essence Queen CC Cushion look lovely together, too. It would be nice to know what other shades are available for this cushion and what the price tag says for the product. Did anybody else try this brand before? I would be curious about your impression, if you know that brand.

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Just as a short reminder: All products mentioned and reviewed on this blog are of my personal opinions. This product here was sent to me for reviewing purpose by http://www.bntnews.co.uk/ which doesn’t influence me in providing my honest opinion on the products.

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asian cosmetics beauty BNTnews PR Sample review

Review: Daeng Gi Meo Ri Look At Hair Loss True Shampoo

17. August 2015

The BNTnews beauty box for August came with another Daeng Gi Meo Ri Shampoo to try: Daeng Gi Meo Ri Look At Hair Loss True Shampoo. This shampoo targeting hair protection and scalp care would not be that kind of shampoo I would select personally for my dry hair, but nevertheless, I was willing to give it a try.

The name of the brand and product sound very long and complicated to someone with no Korean language knowledge, but the brand name Daeng Gi Meo Ri can be translated in this way:Daenggi is a traditional Korean ribbon which is tied to the braided hair of unmarried Korean women. Meori means simply hair in Korean. I reviewed the Daeng Gi Meo Ri Ja Dam Hwa The First Scalp and Hair Cleansing Treatment and the Oriental Special Shampoo before, and like the previous products this Korean shampoo works on your hair by using oriental medicine inspired ingredient, like traditionally used herbs, roots and flowers. In contrast to the previously reviewed products, the design of the Daeng Gi Meo Ri Look At Hair Loss True Shampoo is much more simple and modern. A pitty, since I love the super elegant and pretty design of the other two products. The Daeng Gi Meo Ri Look At Hair Loss True Shampoo comes in a pale blue bottle and looks almost medical. The 500 ml bottle doesn’t come with a pump either, but a regular opening.

Since Daeng Gi Meo Ri is not well known outside of Korea it is hard to get more informationa about the ingredients of this shampoo. But I can tell you about the details I know: The Daeng Gi Meo Ri Look At Hair Loss True Shampoo is supposed to deliver energy and vitality to hair and scalp through Chinese Medicine issued ingredients such as white ginseng, cynanchum, coix, Russian iris and pomegranate. It moisturizes dry scalp with aloe extracts and avocado oil, plus leaves a refreshing feeling with menthol. It creates a creamy foam while lathering it up, which is generated by natural surfactants used. These help to eliminate wastes on scalp, too. Most important, the Daeng Gi Meo Ri Look At Hair Loss True Shampoo doesn’t contain silicones. The shampoo is dermatologically tested and Korean FDA approved. According to the description on the bottle it is suited for oily scalp types…Wait! Oily scalp? When I read about the point that it is suited for oily scalp types I was worried that this shampoo will not be suited for me. My scalp is normal, but my hair is dry and frizzy, espcially in the ends. In advance I used a hair treatment on my end after using the shampoo. I discovered the shampoo foams up nicely and has a pleasant creamy scent, which is not ginseng-y like the other two Daeg Gi Meo Ri products I tried. My hair didn’t feel dry while washing it neither. Moreover, it has a cooling feeling on my scalp, probably due to the menthol. My hair was also managable after washing and I could comb through it without any problems of tangled hair. I discovered though, that when my hair has dried down I kind of have the feeling that the hair is weightened down, especially near my scalp. After one day the top hair looks greasy already and I have to wash the hair again. Usually, my hair looks that way after two days, if it looks that greasy at all.

I don’t know if the heavyness of the Daeng Gi Meo Ri Look At Hair Loss True Shampoo is due to the point that my hair has gotten used to the Daeng Gi Meo Ri Oriental Special Shampoo, which is making my hair feel drier, or if it is the richness of the shampoo itself. Although it states that it contains aloe extracts and avocado oil it still is recommened for oily scalp types, so I doubt it is too rich after all. Since I don’t have any hair loss yet (luckily) I cannot discuss that point, but I like the fact that it doesn’t contain any silicon and the cooling effect it has on the scalp. The scent is pleasant, too, and the foam feels nice and creamy on my hair…I hope my hair will adjust to that shampoo, because I would love to use it for a longer time and see if it works for me. Yet, compared to the Oriental Special Shampoo I like the Daeng Gi Meo Ri Look At Hair Loss True Shampoo better. The retail price should be similar to the Oriental Shampoo, but I couldn’t find it online available, yet.

This product was provided to me by BNTnews for reviewing. Don’t forget to visit the other BNTGirls Kim, Bella, Mary, Celine, Alene, Joanne, Chermaine, , Mitha, and Blair and check out their reviews for the August BNT Beauty Box. And visit BNTnews for the latest Korean news and trends:

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♥ If you have time feel free to join my giveaway! ♥

Just as a short reminder: All products mentioned and reviewed on this blog are of my personal opinions. This product here was sent to me for reviewing purpose by http://www.bntnews.co.uk/ which doesn’t influence me in providing my honest opinion on the products.

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asian cosmetics beauty BNTnews PR Sample review

Review: Amaranth Messaline Ultra Hydrating Cream

30. July 2015

My last review for BNTnews Beauty Box July is about the Amaranth Messaline Ultra Hydrating Cream. Although from all the super interesting items this month the May Coop Raw Sauce was my favorite I saved the Amaranth Messaline Ultra Hydrating Cream review for last because it has the most interesting formula. Keep reading if you want to know more:

Personally, this is the first time I realized the brand Amaranth. I saw some reviews before, but it never was really present in my head. This Korean brand though belongs to the Samsung company. The Amaranth Messaline Ultra Hydrating Cream belongs to the Messaline Special Care Series, which has the motto: “Pave your way to beautiful and healthy skin. It meets your needs”. The line consists of four products divided into four steps. The Amaranth Messaline Ultra Hydrating Cream is step 1 of the series. Step 2 is the Messaline Vibrant Shimmering CC Cream, step 3 the Messaline Bubble Berry Mask Cleanser and step 4 the Messaline Overnight Moisture Sleeping Mask.

According to the description of the Amaranth Messaline Ultra Hydrating Cream it gives“elasticity and moisture to the skin and makes moist and healthy skin by vegetable moisture water drops containing Rosa Centifolia flower Water, Panax Ginseng Root Extract and Chamomilla Recutita Flower Extracts”. The cardboard box of the cream contains only Korean description, but inside the box was an instruction paper with some English description, too. Apart from that the packaging design is elegant in blue and gold with reflective paper (which made it a bit hard to take a pictures). The cream itself comes in a pump bottle/tube with the same colors made of sturdy plastic with a clear cap.

Apart from the Korean description on the cardboard box you can find the English ingredients listed on the side. I added them to COSDNA and you can check them >>here<<. Unfortunately, there are some ingredients I didn’t hope to see. These ingredients are silicon, alcohol and parabens. The other ingredients are mainly plant extracts, like cabbage rose, red ginseng and chamomile extracts to boost moisturizing and elasticity. According to the description this cream is used after cleansing and toning, but seeing that it contains silicon and the fact that it is smoothing the face it sounds more like a primer to me.

The Amaranth Messaline Ultra Hydrating Cream has the consistency of a gel-type cream when you pump it, but now comes the special part: the cream transforms into water once rubbed. It forms tiny water droplets and feels really moist that way. This formula is called water-drop texture, and you will find some other products like that within the Korean beauty market. The water-drop texture makes it particularity very fast absorbing, and the skin really feels moist during application, as if you use a toner. It has a nice floral scent, too, maybe a bit rose-like scent. It definitively makes the skin feel smoother (silicon), but although it feels moist while application I would not say that it is rich enough for dry skin-types (also because of the alcohol). Moreover, since it is more similar to a primer I applied it after my regular moisturizer. I was a bit confused nevertheless, if I should apply it before or after sunscreen. I tried both, but I’m not sure about either way. If you have any recommendations for that part I would be very thankful.

The Amaranth Messaline Ultra Hydrating Cream is really interesting considering its water-drop texture. It smooths out the skin, too and is a nice primer considering that fact. I dislike some of the ingredients and I wish it would not contain alcohol or parabens. And I’m a bit confused about how to use it the best way. Probably, I wouldn’t repurchase it, but since it contains 60 g of product it will last me some time anyways. I couldn’t find it in the known online stores, so it is a bit tricky to now how much it retails. But from the looks of it I’m sure it is a more pricey brand.

This product was provided to me by BNTnews for reviewing. Don’t forget to visit the other BNTGirls Mary, Celine, Alene, Joanne, Chermaine, Faith, Mitha, Laura and Blair and check out their reviews for the July BNT Beauty Box. And visit BNTnews for the latest Korean news and trends:

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♥ And if you have time please visit my post about the July Japan Candy Box. There is even a giveaway where you can win a Japan Candy Box for yourself ♥

Just as a short reminder: All products mentioned and reviewed on this blog are of my personal opinions. This product here was sent to me for reviewing purpose by http://www.bntnews.co.uk/ which doesn’t influence me in providing my honest opinion on the products.

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asian cosmetics beauty BNTnews PR Sample review

Review: May Coop Raw Sauce

29. July 2015

I’m super excited to review the May Coop Raw Sauce today, which was featured in ‘Get it Beauty’ by Secret’s Song Ji Eun. This is my first time trying a product from May Coop, but apparently this brand is getting more and more attention lately. Time to take a closer look at this toner, emulsion and essence 3 in 1 product:

As I said above, the Korean brand May Coop is really new to me and until it was featured in ‘Get it Beauty’. I had never heard from that brand before. It seems it is a more high end brand according to the very beautiful packaging and the materials used. It also seems that they are focusing on natural ingredients.

The May Coop Raw Sauce is a multifunctional essence that combines the effects of a toner, an essence and a emulsion/lotion in one. Unlike most cosmetic items that are made of water, this one contains acer maple water instead. It is quite a trend in Korea right now to use products containing other liquids as replacement for water. The description of the product packaging says acer maple water, but the translation of the ingredient list says maple sap. I think they mean the maple xylem sap, because 93 % maple sap/ syrup would be super sticky and sugary. You can find the ingredients on COSDNA. Apart from a whole bunch of plant ingredients it sadly contains alcohol. So if you have sensitive skin be aware of this point. On the other hand, the main ingredient here is maple tree sap, which makes 93 % of the total volume. All the other ingredients fall into the remaining 7 %.

The design of the cardboard box of the May Coop Raw Sauce is like a wooden box. It has the key points of the essence listed on one side, shaped like wooden rings. The features of this multipurpose essence are: Humectant, Nature 701 Complex, Organic Grain extracts, Natural Moisturizing Factor, Eco-cert Certified Fructan, and Acer Maple Water. Maple xylem sap is mainly a watery solution of hormones, mineral elements and other nutrients of the plant. The maple xylem sap is a very effective moisturizer as its rich in glycerin and reinforces skin’s immunity. The similarity to the water molecule size of the skin allows the maple xylem sap to penetrate deaper into the skin than regular water. Another key ingredient seems to be the skin-nourishing fructan powder (eco-cert certified), which is supposed to strengthen the skin.

The May Coop Raw Sauce comes in a 150 ml frosted glass bottle. The cap is from plastic, but has the same wooden pattern as the cardboard box. The bottle comes separately packed in a canvas, which gives it another high-quality touch. the regular drop dispensing opening of the bottle is sealed by a plastic in order to prevent leaking.

The glass has the same description in wooden rings like the cardboard packaging. According to the official site May Coop Raw Sauce fulfills these three points: intensive moist supply, intensive nutrition supply, constantly strengthening. The May Coop Raw Sauce is a watery liquid (a tiny bit thicker than water though), which has a light yellow color. It has a fragrant smell to it, which is stronger than most of the other toner/essences I use atm, but the scent is nice and doesn’t linger long. Apart from that, the May Coop Raw Sauce feels moisturizing, and is not sticky after absorption. although it contains some alcohol it doesn’t feel drying (probably since the amount is not much). Although quite moist and labeled as multi-function product I still use many other products in combination and I do not skip my usual moisturizer. I’ve only used this for 2 weeks so far, so I cannot make any remarks about long-term effects like strengthening, but I think it fits nicely into my skincare routine, doesn’t give me any breakouts and feels like an extra hydration boost for my face.

I enjoyed trying the May Coop Raw Sauce very much and I’m happy it found a place in my skincare routine. I yet don’t know if I will repurchase it again and if it will replace any of my other steps in future, but it will be used up to the end for sure. The May Coop Raw Sauce is available at Peach and Lily for 42.00 US$ or at Koreadepart for 38.27 US$. From the official May Coop page you’ll find it listed for 36000 Won. Although it is a multi-purpose product it is more on the expensive side. On the other hand, the detailed packaging and material makes up for the price. Also the volume is more than enough to last for a long time, since not much product is needed. So probably, it will take some time before I’ve used up this precious product.

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♥ And if you have time please visit my post about the July Japan Candy Box. There is even a giveaway where you can win a Japan Candy Box for yourself ♥

Just as a short reminder: All products mentioned and reviewed on this blog are of my personal opinions. This product here was sent to me for reviewing purpose by http://www.bntnews.co.uk/ which doesn’t influence me in providing my honest opinion on the products.

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asian cosmetics beauty BNTnews PR Sample review

Review: Daeng Gi Meo Ri Oriental Special Shampoo

28. July 2015

// HAIRCARE / PR SAMPLE / KBEAUTY //

The BNTnews beauty box for July contained another shampoo from the Korean brand Daeng Gi Meo Ri, which I introduced to you in one of my previous reviews. This review will be about the Daeng Gi Meo Ri Oriental Special Shampoo, a softening and protecting shampoo full of oriental medicine inspired ingredients.

The Daeng Gi Meo Ri Oriental Special Shampoo comes as a 500 ml pump bottle along with a 145 ml travel sized bottle in a kit. Both bottles are packed in a cardboard box with a lot of Korean description all over. On the backside the most important facts are listed and it displays an image of some herbs at the top, too.

According to the description it contains more than 35% of ripe and enriched medicinal ingredients as well as a patented substance extracted from Giant Crinum Lily (Crinum asiaticum). The Daeng Gi Meo Ri Oriental Special Shampoo is full of vitamins and minerals, and it uses marine phyto-complex to protect the scalp with green algae (Caulerpa racemosa) extracts, antioxidative chlorella (a single cell green algae) and deeply moisturizes with fermented Pseudoalteromonas (marine bacterium). Moreover, it contains Tripterygium wilfordii root, false daisy (Eclipta prostrata) and hazelnut extracts for energizing and vitalizing tired and dry scalps. Furthermore, it contains keratin and camelia to treat damaged scalp from within and reinforce its elasticity. It uses natural surfactant so it does not irritate. You can find some more Korean description >>here<<.

taken from http://doorimall.net

I also found the picture above there and it lists the 15 herbs used for the Daeng Gi Meo Ri Oriental Special Shampoo. Apart from some of the ingredients already mentioned above I could detect these ingredients (hopefully correctly translated with help of google translate): gujeolcho (Siberian chrysanthemum), ginseng (Panax ginseng), Chinese arborvitae (Platycladus orientalis), Mulberry (Morus), Rehmannia glutinosa, Siberian ginseng (acanthopanax), lotus, bamboo, and pigweed (Portulaca oleracea). Apart from all these oriental ingredients let’s take a moment to take a closer look at the Daeng Gi Meo Ri Oriental Special Shampoo packaging design. I think the bottles look super pretty. I love the ornaments around the pump, which is the stopper for the pump in the same time. All the golden and dark green color makes it look super luxurious already.

I love how it comes with a smaller bottle in travel size! But now, let’s get into the real review for the Daeng Gi Meo Ri Oriental Special Shampoo. First, what makes it special? On the one hand it is the ingredients of course, which gives it the name, but on the other hand, what I personally found very special was the recommendation to wash twice with this shampoo and to not use any other hair products during treatment. I have dry, frizzy and naturally wavy/curly hair, so usually I’m always using conditioner with any shampoo I use and moreover I’m using hair treatments, hair oil or entangling mists/serums every other day, too. My scalp is not dry, nor do I have any problems with an itchy scalp. For dry scalp, it is even recommended to use this shampoo in the morning and evening for a short period of time. I’m washing my hair almost every day, if not every second at least. For two weeks I have been using the shampoo as advised. I washed my hair twice with the shampoo and didn’t use any other hair products. The shampoo has a brown color and a herbal scent (mostly ginseng-ish). It foams up very nicely already after the first washing and one pump was enough for my long hair. Nevertheless, the natural cause of this was, that my hair became super dry and frizzy already after one usage. The hair didn’t feel soft and smooth like when using my regular shampoo and conditioner, nor was it easy to comb. I was struggling a lot with that, but I kept using the shampoo as recommended. After one week I felt that my upper hair felt smoother after washing once dried. The hair around my scalp looked more shiny, too, but the length of my hair and the ends continued to be very dry and tangled.

My conclusion considering the Daeng Gi Meo Ri Oriental Special Shampoo is, that I cannot use it on its own. I love what it makes which my upper hair and the way the hair near my scalp feels, but it is too drying for the long ends of my naturally dry hair structure. If you have dry hair and would like to try this shampoo on your own I would recommend you to use a hair pack on your ends nevertheless. That’s the way I’m using this shampoo now and it works much better for my hair. People with oily/normal hair or people with shorter hair might love the shampoo as it is. I love that it comes in a pump bottle and that it contains so many plant-derived ingredients and I love that it makes my hair partially more soft and shiny, but I would rather prefer a shampoo which also provides enough moisture for long and dry hair. The Daeng Gi Meo Ri Oriental Special Shampoo retails for 25500 Won from www.doorimall.net. The kit is available on Amazon.com for 37.99 US$. I tried another Korean herbal shampoo before, the Damoae Therapy Shampoo, which was supposed to be used in a similar way. But in contrast to the Daeng Gi Meo Ri Oriental Spacial Shampoo, it came with a tonic to use after washing, which helped to comb my hair. Also, the Damoae Therapy Shampoo felt like a conditioner when used for the second wash, and if you like herbal shampoos and have dry hair I can definitively recommend you the Damoae Shampoo instead.

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Just as a short reminder: All products mentioned and reviewed on this blog are of my personal opinions. This product here was sent to me for reviewing purpose by http://www.bntnews.co.uk/ which doesn’t influence me in providing my honest opinion on the products.

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Review: Too Cool For School Check Hot Girl Lash

27. July 2015

Spring and summer are always the seasons where the make-up choice gets more colorful. Therefore, I’m introducing the new Too Cool For School Check Hot Girl Lash to you today, a colorful mascara selection by my favorite Korean design cosmetic brand Too Cool For School.

Too Cool For School is a Korean brand, known for a unique packaging design. Their products are in the mid-pricey region and slightly more expansive than Etude House for example. The Too Cool For School Check Hot Girl Lash belongs to the Check line of Too Cool For School, which all have a checkered/plaid pattern design as common characteristic. I like plaid pattern in general and it reminds me of school uniforms and/or punk(rock) fashion.

The Too Cool For School Check Hot Girl Lash mascara comes in a checked cardboard box. The paper of the the box has not only the checked pattern printed on, but also has the pattern imprinted into the surface, so you can feel it. It looks like a high quality packaging that way. The description on the cardboard box is short and in Korean only, but you will find a lot of pictures and more Korean description on the official Too Cool For School page.

Too Cool For School Check Hot Girl Lash is a colorful volume mascara, which helps creating a unique makeup look. It is available in three shades, which are No.1 Nuts Brown, No.2 Royal Blue and No.3 Raspberry Pink. I received No. 3 with my BNTnews Box for July, a pink/plum colored mascara. The Too Cool For School Check Hot Girl Lash mascaras come in smaller containers than other mascaras have regularly. Therefore the wand is also shorter, which makes it a bit easier to use and to control.

The consistency of the mascara is creamy. The texture is soft yet not cakey and allows a long-lasting effect. This product presents the Curl-up Polymer technology, which preserves a water and sweat-proof C-curve for a long time. The wand has a curved shaped, too, as you can see in the images. I tried the mascara on my bare lashes for the images below and used one layer and I must admit that it does a good job in curling the lashes and holding the curl. My lashes are naturally dark, so it is difficult to see bright colors on them. It gives them rather a light pop of color than being super pigmented. since I never were super colorful eye make-up I’m not bothered by that fact. I think it will look much brighter and colorful on people with naturally light/blonde lashes. On the Too Cool For School page you will even see some suggestions on how to in-cooperate these mascaras into pretty eye make-up looks.

I really like the small size of the Too Cool For School Check Hot Girl Lash mascaras, since it is very travel friendly. Nevertheless, I would love if they added a regular black color to it, although I would be intrigued to try the brown version. Although I’m not really wearing very bright and colorful eye make-up I’m positively surprised by the pink color, since it makes the eyes appear softer and might look good with very minimalistic make-up, too. Considering the curling effect, this mascara does what it promises and give a nice curl, too. The Too Cool For School Check Hot Girl Lash mascaras retail for 12000 Won from the official Too Cool For School page. Since it is a new item it might take some time before it is available in other online stores.

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♥ And if you have time please visit my post about the July Japan Candy Box. There is even a giveaway where you can win a Japan Candy Box for yourself ♥

Just as a short reminder: All products mentioned and reviewed on this blog are of my personal opinions. This product here was sent to me for reviewing purpose by http://www.bntnews.co.uk/ which doesn’t influence me in providing my honest opinion on the products.

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asian cosmetics beauty BNTnews PR Sample review

Review: Forencos Lips In Love Lip Tint

25. July 2015

I didn’t make a lip makeup product for quite some time, but I have some new additions to my stash. This here is the Forencos Lips In Love Lip Tint, a long lasting lip tint which was introduced by SISTAR’s SoYou. I’m not much into K-Pop, but I know that many of you are familiar with the K-Pop idols.

Forencos is a Korean brand which sells environmental cosmetics since 1988. The brand has quite a range of skincare and makeup products, but in the internationally known Korean online shops they don’t have a lot of products from this brand, which is why it is quite unknown. They have 7 main issues within their brand philosophy: skin rejuvenating, skin refreshing, skin revitalizing, skin relieving, skin regeneration, skin revival and skin resolution. I did review some sheet masks from this brand and you can take a look at the reviews >>here<< and >>here<<.

The Forencos Lips In Love Lip Tint comes in 7 different shades and if you know the Korean language you will find a lot of decsription about the product on the official Korean page. The cardboard packaging of this lip tint on the other hand doesn’t have much descriptions printed on, except from the shade. The shade I will show you here is No. 4 “Lol Lol Lol”, a coral pink tone. The design of the lip tint container is simple, yet elegant, with a golden cap which holds the applicator.

The Forencos Lips In Love Lip Tint is supposed to be a long lasting lip tint providing moisture without being sticky. Moreover it is supposed to give high pigmentation for smooth lips and have a refreshing lip-gloss formula. When swatched on the back of my hand the first thing I notice is the bubblegum scent this lip tint has. It applies like a milk type tint, not a water or oil based tint. The color is vivid , but can also be blended in in order to create a more toned down look or gradient lips.

Application of the Forencos Lips In Love Lip Tint on my lips is easy and feels very smooth. It reminds me of the matte lip products like Skinfood Milky Rose Vita color Lip Lacquer, which have a more velvety feeling on the lips. The finish is not matte, but it isn’t glossy either. I would say it has the typical finish for milk type lip tints. The pigmentation is good and it even is nicely visible on darker lips. Usually I have problems with pink shades because they do not show up nicely on my lips or settle to heavily in my lip lines, but this one looks nice and spreads without being patchy. Although it has a bubblegum scent the taste of the Forencos Lips In Love Lip Tint is not sweet as I expected, but somehow salty…I do not like the taste to much, but it is still better than the usual bitter taste of most lip tints. The lasting power of this lip tint is not strong either. Without drinking or eating it holds up to 2-3 hours, but as soon as you drink or touch your lips in any other way it will transfer and fade. It doesn’t look odd while fading though.

I do not have many lip tints of that color, since I usually choose the cherry and red shades, so it is nice for me to have a pink/coral shade in my collection now which also shows up on my lips. This is also the reason why I’m using the Forencos Lips In Love Lip Tint surprisingly often in the last weeks. I couldn’t find any translated ingredients here, so I didn’t include them into my rating, but all in all this is a solid lip tint. The price of 19000 Won on the official Forencos page is quite high though, so I would personally not buy it again, although there are some other interesting colors for the Forencos Lips In Love Lip Tints. Did you try any products from Forencos already? What are your impressions?

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♥ And if you have time please visit my post about the July Japan Candy Box. There is even a giveaway where you can win a Japan Candy Box for yourself ♥

Just as a short reminder: All products mentioned and reviewed on this blog are of my personal opinions. This product here was sent to me for reviewing purpose by http://www.bntnews.co.uk/ which doesn’t influence me in providing my honest opinion on the products.

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Review: Coréana Sho EGFactor 28 Days Timeless Program Part 2

15. July 2015

Some of you have been probably waiting for my second part review for the Coréana Sho EGFactor 28 Days Timeless Program. In the first part I showed you already this gorgeously packed set consisting of 28 ampoule vials and two eye cream tubes and I talked about my impression. Today I will go a bit into the detail considering the ingredients and my verdict after using it for 28 days.

Coréana is quite a well known Korean company with the motto “art through nature”. It has quite a variety of brands, like Senite or Biodefense and many more. Sho is one brand of Coréana using horse oil as key ingredient. Horse oil or “Mayu” has been very popular in Korea in the last months, especially during winter, because of its deeply moisturizing properties. The Sho EGFactor line combines the horse oil with EGF in order to have even more anti-aging properties. This Coréana Sho EGFactor 28 Days Timeless Program contains two items: an ampoule and eye cream.

Everything has a beautiful golden color. Even the vials have golden caps. I love the ornaments on the eye cream containers and their syringe shape. I showed some more details about the eye cream packaging in the first post, too. All in all, the Coréana Sho EGFactor 28 Days Timeless Program is a beautifully packed gift, targeting more mature skin and therefore makes a good present for your mother maybe?!

Now, let’s take a closer look at the ingredients of the Coréana Sho EGFactor 28 Days Timeless Program this time: The key ingredients of this anti aging kit are Jeju’s horse oil and EGF as the name already says.

Horse Oil

Let’s talk about Mayu first: Mayu (korean), Bayhu (japanese) or Horse Oil has been used in ancient times but it became popular again recently. Horse oil has been known as home remedy for treating dry and chapped skin for many years. It is rich in unsaturated fatty acids and is close to human sebum in its composition and therefore absorbs fast into the skin, which leads to a more elastic and hydrated skin with an improved barrier. By the way, in order to obtain horse oil no horses have to be killed! It is taken from underneath the mane without harming the animal and refined afterwards.

EGF- Epidermal Growth Factor

The second key ingredient is EGF. What is EGF and what does it actually do for our skincare? EGF is the short term for Epidermal Growth Factor. In the ingredients list you will find it as human oligopeptide-1. The EGF targets specific receptors in the cell (EGFR) and is the necessary molecule for this receptor in order to work. From the name you can already tell that it promotes the cell growth, so it is important for our body, since dying and growing cells are a regular process in our body.

Short excursus: It is important to note the difference between the receptor and the EGF: EGF is not carcenogenic! Mutations in cells can cause an overexpression of the EGFR for example, which means we have too many of these receptors in our cells, which can lead to uncontrolled growth of cells, means cancer. Other proteins can put the EGFR in a permanent on-state, which leads to uncontrolled growth of cells aswell.

But does EGF have anti-aging properties? Since the EGF should address wrinkles in first place it has to affect the collagen production somehow in order to be beneficial for our skin. When EGF is applied with a cream it has to be absorbed into the dermis, the inner layer of the skin, to have any effect, and only a very, very small amount of topically applied EGF will be able to reach the dermis at all. And even if it helps to produce collagen it does not have any effect on the degradation of the old collagen. In conclusion we can say that the EGF may be responsible for a plumping effect of the outer skin layer, but it will not have any effect on the inner skin layer and therefore will not reduce wrinkles.

Coréana Sho EGFactor 28 Days Timeless Program Ampoule

I’m starting off with the Coréana Sho EGFactor 28 Days Timeless Program Ampoule first. As I described in my first review, the ampoule comes in 28 tiny brown glass vials with a golden cap. In order to open them, you have to push the cap, which is super hard! I’m not kidding! I’m struggling every time when I want to open up a new vial and sometimes I have to ask my bf to open it, because it takes such an effort. I do not know why they designed the vials like this, because it is not convenient to have such a hard time with the ampoule every night before going to bed. They could have either made a large ampoule bottle with a dropper instead, or if they wanted to pack these up in single portions they should have taken these tear-shaped capsules which you can tear open. The ampoule itself has a golden, clear color and has a gel-oil-type consistency and a pleasant scent. It takes some time to absorb, but if you are patient it will sink into the skin, leaving it moist but with a tacky feeling. The packaging description says that one ampoule vial is for one day use of your face and neck. Each vial contains 2 ml, but I personally think that 1 ml is more than enough for face and neck. Taking the whole amount of the product makes it only more difficult to absorb and may result in a sticky feeling, too. I started to use the ampoule before my final moisturizer, but I decided that it is better to mix it with my night time moisturizer instead of applying it separately. My skin doesn’t feel dry nor dehydrated in the next morning, since the barrier of night cream and ampoule keep all the moisture inside. I’m sure this ampoule will do great work in cold seasons. The ingredients of the ampoules are:

water, glycerine, dipropylene glycol, morinda citrifolia fruit extract, alcohol, xylitylglucoside, saccharide isomerate, hydrolyzed elastin, hydrolyzed collagen, morus alba twig extract, human oligopeptide-1 (0.1 ppm), acetyl glycosamine, sodium hyalurunate, glycosaminoglycans, colloidal gold, acetyl heptapeptide-9, anhydroxylitol, xylitol, acrylates/C10-30 alkyl acrylate crosspolymere, PEG-40 hydrogenated castor oil, PPG-26-buteth-26, glyceryl acrylate/acrylic acid copolymere, butylene glycol, horse fat, phenoxyethanol, fragnance, potassium hydroxide, ethylhexylglycerin, disodium EDTA, benzoic acid, dehydroacetic acid, yellow 5, red 4, blue 1

The ingredients are safe to use according to COSDNA and you can have a more close look at them >>here<<.

Coréana Sho EGFactor 28 Days Timeless Program Eye Cream

The Coréana Sho EGFactor 28 Days Timeless Program Eye Cream comes in these two beautiful syringe-shaped containers. Each of them contains 10 ml, which is quite a lot for eye cream. The good thing about having two of them is, that I could put one in my own bathroom and the other one at my bf’s apartment :D. Although the packaging states, that this product is an eye cream you will find in the directions to apply it all over your face. I don’t know if this is a translation mistake, or if this is really meant to be. I only used it for my eye area after all. The eye cream is a cream type, light product, which melts into the skin easily and absorbs very quickly, leaving a matte and not greasy finish. It is not heavy either, so you can use it also on your eyelid and not only for your under eye region. I have absolutely no complaints about the eye cream, since it absorbs fast and feels nice on the skin. The pump type syringe container is very easy to use and you can even close and open it, so it can e carried around without spilling product. The ingredients for the eye cream are:

water, propanediol, cetyl ethylhexanoate, caprylic/ capric triglyceride, morinda citrifolia fruit extract, cetearyl alcohol, glycerine, cetearyl olivate, methyl gluceth-20, sorbitan olivate, pentaerythrityl tetraisostearate, dimethicone, hydrolysed elastin, morus alba twig extract, hydrolyzed collagen, human oligopeptide-1 (0.1 ppm), tocopheryl acetate, sodium hyalurunate, lecithin, acetyl heptapeptide-9, colloidal gold, glyceryl stearate, beeswax, hydrogenated vegetable oil, PEG-100 stearate, sodium acrylate/sodium acryloyldimethyl, tarate copolymer, xanthan gum, isohexadecane, polysorbate80, horse fat, phenoxyethanol, fragnance, ethylhexyl glycerin, disodium EDTA

The ampoule and the eye cream have quite some ingredients in common as you can see. You can check all the ingredients on COSDNA >>here<<.

My final verdict for the Coréana Sho EGFactor 28 Days Timeless Program is that the products on their own are good products and will be nice for dry skin types. Both products are hydrating and feel nourishing for the skin. But, is there any improvement considering their anti-wrinkle claim? I do not see any changes in the amount of fine lines I have (for example on my forehead or under eyes) after using this program for the advised 28 days and longer. Since I like the hydrating properties of it I will continue to use them up, but in case you are looking for a anti-wrinkle wonder I can assure you that this product will not change anything. Now, the negative points for the Coréana Sho EGFactor 28 Days Timeless Program are the design of the ampoule vials and the price tag of this set. The vials are so hard to open and I do not see the sense in that point. Especially in the evening you don’t want to use all your last powers to open up a tiny ampoule vial. For lazy people this will be a reason to skip the ampoule. And the price tag is for this set is….enormously high! You can find it on ebay for around 100 US$. I saw it on RoseRoseShop discounted from 296 US$ (???) to 59.26 US$. Would I spend 100 bucks for this skincare set? No! 50 US$ seems much more reasonable, and it is considerable to buy this set a a mother’s day gift or similar.

This product was provided to me by BNTnews for reviewing. Don’t forget to visit the other BNTGirls Doris, Celine, Alene, Kim and Bella and check out their reviews. And visit BNTnews for the latest Korean news and trends:

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Just as a short reminder: All products mentioned and reviewed on this blog are of my personal opinions. This product here was sent to me for reviewing purpose by http://www.bntnews.co.uk/ which doesn’t influence me in providing my honest opinion on the products.

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