korean cosmetics Archive | Page 15 of 43

Review: CosRX Oil-Free Ultra Moisturizing Lotion

11. April 2016

//KBEAUTY / SKINCARE / AFFILIATE LINKS //

Everytime CosRX releases a new product the whole asian beauty lover community seems to be freaking out with joy and looking forward to get their hands on it as quickly as possible. And no doubt, most of the products I tried from this brand are worth to be repurchased and additionally are really budget-friendly. So, no wonder when the CosRX Oil-Free Ultra Moisturizing Lotion was launched a couple of weeks ago I was determined to buy it.

CosRX is an affordable Korean brand “offering good quality beauty items for 10 years”. The brand name is composed of Cos for cosmetics and RX for prescription. Brand like Ciracle and C20 (yes, the famous vitamin C serum) are also part of COSRX. One of the rather popular skincare lines from COSRX are the AHA/BHA skincare products. Their products feature key ingredients which show a visible effectively and a simple no-frills design. On top the prices of their products is affordable compared to similar products with the similar ingredients. I tried quite some CosRX products in the past and I will make a quick list of them at the end of the post (and I have still a bunch of products from this brand waiting to be tested, too!).

Going back to the CosRX Oil-Free Ultra Moisturizing Lotion, the name drew me in for two reasons: the first one is the part about ‘oil-free’. With summer approaching here (very slowly of course-today morning it is still 4°C…) the skin will be more oily that usual, even for my dry skin my T-zone gets shiny during summer. In order to avoid any additional greasyness an oil-free product is of course a perfect solution! The second part is the ‘Ultra Moisturizing’ which assumes that it still contains the moisture needed for my dry skin overall.

The packaging of the CosRX ist simple as usual, still the pump bottle has a frosted material, which makes it look elegant on the other side. The bottle cones in a cardboard box with detailed English and Korean descriptions, so the ingrediento are also listed on COSDNA.

I use this emulsion and I add a second moisturizing cream on top, or at night I pair it with a sleeping cream. The emulsion has a milky almost balm-like texture with a fresh citrus scent. It disolves like a gel and leaves a fresh and moist feeling and is not greasy, as expected. The key ingredient birch sap has skin conditioning properties and leaves the skin satin-like and smooth, but hyaluronic acid, panthenol, and some other ingredients act moisturizing. I need some pumps of this emulsion to satisfyingly cover my face. I can imagine that this amount of hydration is enough for normal and oily skintypes. I still need some more moisturizers oin top. I still hope that this will be suited to wear on its own in summer. The product is also mild and doesn’t irritate the skin. I had some irritations on my cheeks some weeks ago because of the cold weather and my hot showers, and many products seem to leave a light burning sensation, but the CosRX Oil-Free Ultra Moisturizing Lotion worked perfectly fine luckily.

The CosRX Oil-Free Ultra Moisturizing Lotion is a good emulsion which will be widely loved by oily and normal skintypes. If you like citrus scents you will like this product even more. The fresh scent and the hydration effect combined with no greasy feeling makes this product a perfect buy for summer-time. The bottle contains 100 ml and retails for 20 US$ from Wishtrend and Beautytap. I have included this emulsion tightly into my skincare routines and I’m happy my skin likes it although it is having some problems with irritations at the moment.

Don’t forget to check out my post for current discounts and coupon codes >>here<<!

Here are my other reviews of CosRX products:

COSRX Propolis Light Ampule

COSRX BHA Summer Pore Minish Serum

COSRX AHA/BHA Clarifying Treatment Toner

COSRX Acne Pimple Master Patch

Did you try the CosRX Oil-Free Ultra Moisturizing Lotion? Leave me a comment below :)

Blog_Rating

♥ Pin It! ♥

5 Comments

asian cosmetics beauty Wishtrend

Wishtrend April 2016 Coupons

6. April 2016

Here are the coupon codes for April on Wishtrend! As usual I will summarize the coupons and benefits that you can use while shopping on one of my favorite online retailers for Korean beauty products: Wishtrend. If you don’t know them, but love Korean or Asian cosmetics and skin care products I can recommend you to check out their online shop, especially for one of my favorite products, e.g. the O.S.T. Vitamin C Serum. You’ll also find some products sold at Wishtrend on my Top 30 favorite asian cosmetics for 2015, like the Klairs Freshly Juiced Vitamin C serum or the ElishaCoy Moist Up Hyalurone Ampoule Toner. Also, they have listed brands like COSRX, Tosowoong and Mizon. You can find a list of all the products I reviewed from Wishtrend at the bottom of this post. Furthermore, they have really a great affiliate program for blogger and I can advice you to join it if you are one. Here are the Wishtrend coupon codes for April:

As usual, I’ll start off with the 5 Us$ referral coupon you can receive if you are a new customer. The principle is easy as this: If you use my invitation code 17939205 upon registration you’ll receive a 5 US$ voucher immediately. There will be a specific field in your registration form called “friends invitation program” where you can put the code mentioned above. This way new customers can get 5 US$ off, which is a great to save some money on your first order.

Second, there is also a 10% discount Wishtrend coupon available for April. Below, you’ll find the coupon code for this:

Coupon Code: WISHAF10OFF
Requirement 1: Shopping cart order must be 50 US$ and over to be able to use the 10% off coupon
Requirement 2: Coupon code cannot be combined with any other discount or voucher code.
Only valid until the end of April 2016

The second promotion code is a special gift: You will receive one free Klairs Be Clean Natural Facial Soap (value 10.90 US$) by using the code below.

Voucher Code: ACNESOOTHINGSOAP
All orders over 59 US$
Only valid until the end of April 2016

I also want to point out some new arrivals on Wishtrend. First, the Klairs Midnight Blue Calming Cream. I reviewed the cream already >>here<< and I can recommend you to try it. It is really a lovely cream and the people from Klairs did a good job here. The Klairs Midnight Blue Cream is a comforting moisture cream that provides the skin with intense, soothing hydration. It is formulated using revolutionary guaiazulene combining with Centella asiatica extract and various peptides to recover damaged skin cells from stress and stimulation.

The second product I spotted is this super adorable Delight18 I.U White Pang Cellapy Sun Cushion. It has brightening and UV protection properties and comes with a dog illustration on top. Similar to the Nakeup Face Waterking Cover Cushion it comes in a square cushion pact instead of the regular round ones.

I would advice you to check out their “Free Shipping Area”, so you don’t have to spend the saved money for shipping costs. They have quite some nice items available there, changing from time to time. At the moment they are providing the OST Vitamin C serum for 14.99 US$ in their free shipping zone, and my current vitamin C serum, the Klairs Freshly Juiced Vitamin Drop!

I did a couple of reviews on various Wishtrend products in the past. You might like to check these out, if you are interested in purchasing these:

COSRX Propolis Light Ampule

Klairs Midnight Blue Calming Cream

Klairs Freshly Juiced Vitamin C Serum

Chica y Chico Astazet 4.0

Delight 18 I.U Whitening Cream Glutathione

ElishaCoy Moist Up Hyalurone Ampoule Toner

Skinmiso Pore Corset Serum

Lailly 7 Seconds Make-Up Booster

Pongdang Mulbit Glow BB Cushion

COSRX BHA Summer Pore Minish Serum

COSRX AHA/BHA Clarifying Treatment Toner

I’m from Honey Mask

Boutique Bebe Hair Salon Protein Treatment

COSRX Acne Pimple Master Patch

ElsihaCoy Aloe & Lavender Mask Sheet

Berrisom My Lip Tint Pack and Lip Tint Cleanser

OST C20 Pure Vitamin C21.5 Advanced Serum

Confume Argan Treatment Oil

Pongdang Donkey Milk Emulsion

Klairs Rescue Moisture Kit Part 1 and 2

Berrisom My Lip Tint Pack

CareLab Powerful Pudding Mask

Klairs Gentle Black Deep Oil Cleanser and Sugar Facial Polish

Rojukiss Multi Vita Cleansing Powder

Klairs Rich Moist Soothing Sheet Mask

Damoae Therapy Shampoo and Tonic

Skinmiso Rice Foam Cleanser

Klairs Illuminating Supple BB Cream

O.S.T. Pure Vitamin C20 Serum

Wish Formula Panda Eye Essence Mask

ONL Saladit Essential Juice Sheet Masks

Do you have any favourite item from Wishtrend? What would you love to try from their products?

1 Comment

asian cosmetics beauty PR Sample review RosRoseShop

Review: Tosowoong Makeon Dual Shaking Lip Tint

31. March 2016

A while ago I received some products from Tosowoong Makeon from RoseRoseShop including these three Tososwoong Makeon Dual Shaking Lip Tint. These oil lip tints have also a plumping effect on the lips in addition to the stain. From my previous oil lip tint reviews you might remember that I absolutely love these kinds of tints, because they are not as drying as some of the water-based tints might be. Let’s see how these tints compare to the other oil tints I tried.

Makeon is the makeup brand of the Korean brand Tosowoong. The brand has been founded in 2004 and have the saying “to make beauty innovations”. Tosowoong is known for good and yet affordable skin care products, like the Tosowoong Syn-Ake Natural Pure Essence which I absolutely loved (yes, I’ve emptied it unfortunately :'(…). The packaging of their skin care lines is usually simple, and the ingredients lists are rather short and functional.

For Tosowoong Makeon there are some exceptions though, like the more popular items from this brand, the Tosowoong Makeon Princess Gel Pencil Eyeliner Pencil boxes which come with cute illustrations of various princesses (I will be reviewing one in future, too!). Also the Tosowoong Makeon Dual Shaking Lip Tint comes in a more vivid and colorful packaging. Each lip tint comes in a cardboard box showing the shades of the tints by the according font colors on the packaging.

Lip tints have been super popular in Korea for years and there has always been a huge amount of different lip tints by various brands. Mostly, you came across either water-based lip tints or milky-type lip tints. In contrast to lip gloss or lipstick the lip tints look much more natural and are not sticky. They are also perfect for creating the gradient lips which is also popular among Koreans. Many people have problems with lip tints, because they are not hydrating the lips, since they don’t have a butter or fat as basic ingredient like balm type products, and often when using a balm over the lip tint the staying power of the tint is reduced. The Tosowoong Makeon Dual Shaking Lip Tints are shaking type oil tints like the one I reviewed previously from Tonymoly.

You will see that there are two layers, an oil layer and a liquid layer, which are separated from each other when the bottles are kept untouched for a while. As soon as you shake the bottle the layers mix. The lip tints also comes with an angled applicator, which is easy to use if you are familiar with tints. There are three shades available: No.1 Orange Lip Tint, No.2 Vampire Lip Tint, and No.3 Blood Lip Tint.

As a quick warning for people who are sensitive towards minty spiciness, and spiciness in general: These lip tints are called “spicy gloss”, and it is not only a name but they really give your lips some spicy taste. The first time I tried these I was wondering about that tingling sensation on the lips and then about the spiciness it had, when tasted! It also has a scent of peppermint. If you do not like spicy food or anything similar don’t buy these! The mint and the spices have a plumping effect on the lips and make them appear more volume.

Below you will see how the swatches of the three tints look like on my hand and on my lips. At first the layers still seem to be separate, but as soon as you swiping over it they combine and for an even stain. In general I discovered that these are perfect for gradient lips and it is best to apply them on the inner parts of your lips first and blend it out lightly towards the edges. Don’t go to near towards the outer lines of your lips at first, because the product tends to bleed out a bit. This effect is stopped as soon as you dabb with a cotton swab or your fingers to make the gradient, for example. The first swatch below is directly after applying it with the applicator. The one below shows how even the tint turns once you rub over it.

All the three shades look really pretty and you can see clearly that the shades are distinct from one another (this was my minor complain for the oil tints from Beyond). If you blend them on your lips they will show the color but still look natural, even the orange shade, which is usually not my favorite shade. The tints also do not make the lips feel dry (they contain avocado oil), but have a soft oil feeling and cooling effect (peppermint) while applying, which dries of after a while leaving natural lips. The staying power is not as strong as the Tonymoly Shaking Tint Delight though. It disappears after some time, but can be reapplied without any clumping effects or flaking.

I do like the Tosowoong Makeon Dual Shaking Lip Tints and I also like all the three shades! I know that my warning about the spicy taste of this product might turn some of you away from this tint, but if you are not sensitive towards spiciness and you do not mind peppermint scent then you will probably really like these tints. They are really affordable and retail for ~ 5 US$ on RoseRoseShop. Anyhow, I still can say that I can advise you to test an oil based lip tint, if you had problems with water-based tints before, and this one might be a nice way to try them on a budget.

What is your opinion on oil-based lip tints?

♥ Pin It! ♥

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.roseroseshop.com/ which doesn’t influence me in providing my honest opinion on the products.

2 Comments

asian cosmetics beauty review Wishtrend

Review: COSRX Propolis Light Ampule

28. March 2016

// KBEAUTY / SKINCARE / AFFILIATE LINKS //

Happy Easter holidays everyone! Instead of easter eggs, I have a new review for you in my Easter basket…The COSRX Propolis Light Ampule is one of the products I’ve been using for a long time now, but I always was too busy to write the review. That does not mean that I do not like it- on the contrary! I really enjoyed and enjoy using this, especially since my cheeks have been extremely dry and reddened in the last weeks.

COSRX is an affordable Korean brand “offering good quality beauty items for 10 years”. The brand name is composed of COS for cosmetics and RX for prescription. Brands like Ciracle and C20 (yes, the famous vitamin C serum) are also part of COSRX. One of the rather popular skincare lines from COSRX is the AHA/BHA skincare products. I’ve been using the COSRX BHA Summer Pore Minish Serum and the COSRX AHA/BHA Clarifying Treatment Toner in the past and I really enjoyed using them, especially the toner.

The packaging design of all the COSRX products is simple and similar. They all come in a white cardboard box with a black area where the product name is written in. The rest of the cardboard box contains detailed descriptions in English and Korean. You can click on the image below to enlarge and read the description. The ingredients are listed on COSDNA and the list is remarkably short- it only contains what is needed, which makes me also very fond of the product.

The key product is Propolis Extract and it is in the first place of the list. Propolis is a resinous mixture collected from barks of trees by bees to seal their chambers with the larvae. Propolis has antibacterial and antifungal properties and thus protects the larva, but this also makes it useful in skin care, especially for troubled skin, but it also has skin conditioning properties and makes your skin feel smooth. You will also spot glycerin and hyaluronic acid as moisturizing ingredients, too. Also, the Cassa Obtusifolia Seed Extract has skin conditioning properties, as well as panthenol.

The COSRX Propolis Light Ampule is an ampoule (concentrated serum) and comes in a transparent glass bottle with an attached dropper to the cap. You will see that the ampoule has a light yellow color. It has a thicker fluid texture, no scent, and spreads easily with a moist texture. Ones it is rubbed in it absorbs quickly but leaves a light tackiness, which decreases after few minutes. The skin feels soft in the areas where the ampoule has been applied. According to the description, the ampoule can be either mixed with a BB cream or daily moisturizer or used on its own. Mostly, I used it during my nighttime routine, but it is also wearable during the daytime. Sometimes it made my bb cream/cushion foundation fade quicker than usual, but this happened mostly when I was in a hurry and had no time to wait for proper absorption. Compared to the ampoule I was using before from the Coréana Sho EGFactor 28 Days Timeless Program, this ampoule is much lighter and less heavy and therefore it fits to have it named “Light Ampule”.

The COSRX Propolis Light Ampule is perfect for anyone who never tried an ampoule before. It is light, has a moist texture and still gives the skin a nice glow. The ingredients are really nice and to the point and the price is affordable, too. You can buy this ampoule from Beautytap for 24 US$. I really like this ampoule and there are no negative points I can give this product, despite the simple packaging :D.

Don’t forget to check out my page for current coupons and discounts >>here<<!

Do you have a favorite ampoule? Leave me a comment below :)

♥ Pin It! ♥

4 Comments

bloghop other

Asian Beauty Blogparty: Interview with Michele from “beautyfindsforme”

27. March 2016

As announced im my Asian Beauty Blogparty post I had the honour of interviewing one of our collaborating fellow beauty bloggers. I’m presenting you my interview with Michele from the blog Beautyfindsforme, formally known as Unboxing Beauty. I hope you enjoy reading it! By the way, if you click on her ID card below you will be able to read her interview with Deborah from Adoredee :)

1. Hello Michele! Please give a short introduction about you and your blog.

Hi, I am Michele and I live in the greater Boston area in the great state of Massachusetts, USA. I grew up outside of Detroit, Michigan and lived for years in the Los Angeles area, California. I work full-time outside of my home, as computer programmer/analyst and have a cat obsession. I have two old kitties and if you follow me on IG, I do post pics of them there!
I love sci-fi, horror and murder mysteries, huge fan of House of Cards, Game of Thrones, The Walking Dead, Doctor Who and Star Wars. I am also a political junkie. None of these things you will find on my blog, other than a passing reference to pop culture! My blog is primarily a beauty blog ~ with more of a focus on skincare than makeup. I do unboxings (hence the name of my blog (Unboxing Beauty Finds for Me) of subscription boxes, but I have been doing in-depth product reviews now for over a year.

2. When did you try your first asian beauty product and what made you curious to try more?

The one that I remember leaving a huge impact on me and I took notice of it was Amore Pacific Treatment Enzyme Peel. It is still my bae and I always try and promote it. None of the other powder cleansers come close to it. I received a small sample of it through Sephora several years ago and when I tried it the first time, I then placed an order right away for the full sized item. I resisted the call of Asian skin care for a while after that and it wasn’t until Memebox Global (now defunct) that I really started to have fun with Asian beauty products.

taken from https://beautyfindsforme.wordpress.com

3. Since you do unboxings: Do you think that asian beauty boxes have a main role in the rising popularity of asian beauty products?

Memebox certainly had a huge hand in that, I believe. Before they shut down their global operations and shifted their Korean operations to USA (BAD BAD MOVE, MEMEBOX!!), it was very popular ~ I am a member on makeuptalk.com and our Memebox threads were huge and diverse in population. Now, I see other shops doing boxes, but I don’t think any of them will match the intensity and popularity that Memebox enjoyed its hey day.

4. Do you have a favorite subscription box and why?

Hmmm. No, not really. I try to be a bit diverse in my sub boxes, so there isn’t a lot of overlap for the most part. I will say I love getting items that are eco-friendly, organic and ones made from etsy vendors! I love handcrafted, artisan products

5. What are your favorite asian beauty brands and why?

I don’t have one favorite Asian beauty brand. I love the Amore Pacific family (Innisfree, Primera), as I have had a lot of luck with their items, CosRX and Goodal are also brands that I have had success with as well. I do love Melano (Japan) for their CC products.

taken from https://beautyfindsforme.wordpress.com

6. If you could choose one skincare and one makeup product, what would these be and why?

For skincare, Goodal Waterest Lasting Oil (original formula). It is moisturizing enough to use all over my face, day and night, but without leaving my skin feeling greasy. Makeup ~ only ONE??? I will have to go with Clinique High Impact Extreme Volume Mascara. I really need more than one (such as a powder for my oily skin), but I feel that a great mascara helps define my eyes, which are my best feature.

7. Do you love to keep your skincare routine simple or elaborate? How many steps do you incorporate in your routine?

It depends on how lazy I am or if I am in a hurry!! Cleansing is a no brainer, so I don’t really “include” that in my routine, as it is like breathing. After cleansing, I usually use a toner, serum(s), moisturizer, spot treatments, eye cream. Depending on what I am testing that month, I may have more steps. I usually have 2 or 3 products that fit in the serum, ampoule, essence category as I am a big fan of spot skin care routine, due to my oily skin and blemish hot spots. My day time vs night-time routine may or may not be the same ~ sometimes, it is very similar, with just a couple of extra products in the night-time routine, other times it is completely different!

8. What is your favorite part about blogging?

I love it when readers comment! Seriously, it means that someone took the time to read my post and appreciated it. I love comments and don’t get enough of them :)

9. How much time do you spend on a blog post?

TOO MUCH TIME. I spend hours on reviews, due taking photos, any skincare analysis (pH testing, skin digital analysis), writing down notes on texture, absorption, scent, color, etc. Then finding the ingredient list ~ it is getting easier, but with Asian beauty products, many ingredient lists I put together is either hand translated or I had to type them in manually. Picking out some interesting ingredients, researching it and then also making sure I put the ingredient list in cosDNA.com for public reference.
Even my unboxings are time-consuming, because I don’t just take a photo and put a one liner around it. So, for unboxings, which might include swatches, texture/scent impressions, ingredient list ~ about 3 hours. For reviews ~ depending on the type of review ~ which can be up to 30 hours.

10. Why did you start blogging at first place?

This is an easy one! Because I started purchasing subscription boxes, I wanted to keep track of products that worked for me and what didn’t ~ with the reasons why. I have a bad habit of not remembering what I have tried in the past, especially if it is a product that I didn’t have a strong feelings about, so I wanted to prevent purchasing something that I tried and didn’t like. At the same time, sometimes I would be thinking “oh what WAS the name of that product that I liked so much?” and would spend hours googling based on some obscure/vague term. I then realized that my friends might like reading my thoughts, as I was always sharing them (haha) and also, just because an item was not suitable for me, didn’t mean it wasn’t a good product for them. So, I decided to put together a blog quickly and the rest is history!

Thanks Michele, for answering my questions!

Also see the other interviews here:

Amy’s interview of Julie

Michele’s interview of Deborah (next weekend)

Deborah’s interview of Amy

Julie’s interview of Sophie (next weekend)

Sophie’s interview of me

1 Comment

asian cosmetics beauty BNTnews PR Sample review

Review: Hwajin Cosmetics Homme Terrior All In One

23. March 2016

A rare occasion for me to review a skincare product for men! Actually, I did not only test it by myself, but forced my better half to apply it, although he rarely applies any skincare items. I received the Hwajin Cosmetics Homme Terrior All In One as last item for March from BNTnews and here are my boyfriend’s and my thoughts on it:

Hwajin Cosmetics is a Korean brand absolutely new to me, but it seems they have a range of skincare and household items. The Homme Terrior line is a skincare line designed for men as the name tells us. I also saw that other BNTgirls have received different items like BB cream etc from this line. When I first saw the bottle I thought of perfume or aftershave and I was really surprised to see that this product is actually a multipurpose lotion. It comes in a sturdy bottle in black with some golden details. I didn’t get any ingredients list of this product and it seems that it has launched just recently, because I didn’t find any pricing either. But thanks to BNTnews I have some information nevertheless.

Hwajin Cosmetics Homme Terrior All In One is designed for moisturizing, firming, nourishing and balancing the oiliness and moisture of the skin. Since men like to keep it simple it is really a good idea to name a product ‘All In One’ and give it all the skincare properties needed in one single and easy step. The lotion has compounds derived from resurrection plants, herbs, apricot kernels and others to soften and refresh the damaged and rough skin of men. A patented extract mixture from herbs and licorice soothes and moistens the skin. The key ingredients are:

Lemon extract: the rich vitamin C and the citric acid exfoliates and cleanses the skin

Bamboo extract: the antibacterial and antioxidant effect of the bamboo sap makes the skin moist and healthy

Herb extract: a mixture of extracts from rosemary, chamomile, green tea leaf, licorice, polygonum cuspidatum, centella asiatica and scutellaria

Iceberg water: the ultrapure water collected from Newfoundland, Canada

The ingredients sound really nice and also the texture of the lotion is promising. The Hwajin Cosmetics Homme Terrior All In One has a gel-type, milky consistency and feels moist upon application. It has a light scent, which is not heavy, but fresh and also not too “masculine” either. The lotion is very light and absorbs quickly into the skin without leaving a greasy stain or heavy feeling.

The Hwajin Cosmetics Homme Terrior All In One is a perfect product for lazy people, who want a simple one-step skincare routine. It is not designed for heavily moisturizing dry skin, but it gives a good amount of moisture and makes the skin feel softer- perfect for daily use. The design is sleek and in my opinion the bottle looks elegant aswell. This might work if your want to convince your boyfriend to take some care of his skin, too. Unfortunately, I do not know the retail price yet and neither any specific online store to get it from, but I will update if I have any news.

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, Blair and many more…check out their reviews for the March BNT Beauty Box. You can find my previous reviews for BNTnews >>here<<. And visit BNTnews for the latest Korean news and trends:

Official Page |Tumblr | YouTube | Facebook | Twitter

♥ Pin It! ♥

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.

2 Comments

asian cosmetics beauty BNTnews PR Sample review

Review: Stylenanda 3CE Duo Cover Crayon

22. March 2016

After I tried the Etude House Contouring Stick and loved it so much I stumbled across the Stylenanda 3CE Duo Cover Crayon, which has launched newly aswell. Thanks to BNTnews I was able to try it!

3CE stands for 3 Concept Eyes and was launched in 2009 as a cosmetic brand by Stylenanda. The packaging of the products is similar to MAC cosmetics and mainly black with the triangular logo displayed on the product. Although very simple I think that this kind of packaging looks somehow very trendy. The price of Stylenanda’s 3CE lies in the mid region, but it is more expensive than Etude House for example.

The Stylenanda 3CE Duo Cover Crayon comes in the same sleek packaging like we are used to with 3CE. It is a twist-up crayon with colors on each side. The Crayon is designed for highlighting on the one hand and contouring on the other hand, but it is also suited for covering up blemishes.

The Stylenanda 3CE Duo Cover Crayon is available in four distinct shades, so you can find a perfect match for your skintone and contouring or correcting desire. I received #4, which has a highlighting tip with fine gold and pink pearl color and a correcting/contouring tip of a dark beige color. The product applies smoothly and feels nice and creamy. It does not cake upon application either. I really like the highlighting color in this crayon. The dark beige color has a yellow touch and is not a perfect match for my skintone. I prefer the beige color of the contouring duo stick from Etude House in this case.

All in all I like the Stylenanda 3CE Duo Cover Crayon! The beige color is not exactly my match, but I would love to try the other Duo Cover Crayons to compare. Comparing the Duo Cover Crayon from Etude House to the one from Stylenanda 3CE I like the highlighting color of this one better though. The texture of both sticks is similar and creamy and I do not have any complains about it. If you have a chance to try the to brands in a store for example I can advise you to do so and pick your perfect match. The Stylenanda 3CE Duo Cover Crayon retails for 19 US$ on the official Stylenanda page.

Official Page |Tumblr | YouTube | Facebook | Twitter

♥ Pin It! ♥

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.

3 Comments

asian cosmetics beauty BNTnews PR Sample review

Review: Chosungah 22 Bounce Up Pact Ultra

20. March 2016

It seems that Chosungah 22 is one of these brands getting a lot of attention by many well-known beauty bloggers around the world. I never tried any of their products before, until recently BNTnews send me the Chosungah 22 Bounce Up Pact Ultra for reviewing purpose. Read about my impression on this foundation pact below:

Chosungah 22 is a Korean brand, which has the brand philosophy that makeup is a fun process, which helps to find one strength. Their product design is modern and also looks kind of fun so to say. The creative director Chosungah also had a lipstick collaboration with MAC in the past.

The Chosungah 22 Bounce Up Pact Ultra comes in a back and pink cardboard box and contains a pact foundation and a refill for the pact. The pact is designed to have a soft and bouncy texture of provides long-lasting moisture and sheen. When rubbed or dabbed, the oil compounds of the powder foundation pop and make the particles more adhesive on the skin and thereby create a flawless complexion. According to the description the powder and moistening material sticks together and provides moisture to avoid drying or fading out.

Chosungah 22 Bounce Up Pact Ultra has lifting effects to make the skin look firmer. The ingredients are listed on the cardboard box on English, but the key ingredients are: Agar, Seaweed Extract , Kelp Extract, Caulerpa Racemosa Extract, Dictyopteris Membranacea Extract, Hijiki Fusiforme Extract, and Undaria Extract. The marine ingredients like algae and sea kelp contain many antioxidants and therefore have great anti-aging properties. Also, the pact has SPF 50+/PA++.

Like all pacts this one comes with a mirror and a puff inside. The puff is separated from the foundation with a plastic lid. The plastic lead does not close firmly, but for powder foundations this is not necessary. The puff has a sticky texture, which is designed to adhere the powder to the skin. I personally do not like these kind of sticky puffs too much to be honest.

In order to use the foundation you have to use the puff that comes with the product. Apply the pact and dab it on your skin. The foundation has a bouncy (that’s why it has this name) texture and feels smooth and satin-like.

I received the pact in shade 01 Light Beige, which is slightly to pale for my skintone. Below you see that it makes me look a bit ghosty, but it evens out the redness of my skin. It has a medium coverage, which is buildable. The finish is powdery and tends to be a bit too dry for my skin. I did not feel that the powder foundation is especially moisturizing either. It starts fading quickly, and gets flaky on my skin during the day, too. The foundation has no specific scent.

The Chosungah 22 Bounce Up Pact Ultra is not really my cup of tea. I usually do prefer liquid foundations over powder foundations and this one is simply not working with my dry skin. Maybe it is suited better for other skintypes. I do like the bouncy texture of the foundation in the pan and the key ingredients are nice, too. Nevertheless, the sticky puff and the flaking are no-goes for me. On the official Chosungah web page you will find the previous Chosungah Bounce Up Pact Master, which retails for 51 US$. Probably the Ultra pact will have a similar pricing. By the way, Chosungah 22 will hold a press event in New York on March 22 and beauty magazines like Cosmopolitan and Allure will be attending this press conference aswell.

Official Page |Tumblr | YouTube | Facebook | Twitter

♥ Pin It! ♥

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.

5 Comments

asian cosmetics beauty review

Review: Innisfree Real Fit Lipstick

11. March 2016

// AFFILIATE LINKS / LIPS / KBEAUTY //

Usually, in fall and winter each year Innisfree releases a new lipstick. Since I tried and loved the Innisfree Color Glow Lipstick and the Innisfree Creammellow Lipstick I’ve always been really excited about the new lipstick releases. I was curious about the new Innisfree Real Fit Lipstick which were released end of 2015 and grabbed one of them.

Innisfree is an eco-friendly Korean skin care and makeup brand focusing on natural ingredients from Jeju island and recycle packaging. The design of their products is simply and neat and nicely reflects the ideology of the brand. Innisfree products are usually free from harmful ingredients. They belong to the Amore Pacific group.

As always the Innisfree lipsticks come in a very sleek and simple packaging design. The products have mainly a white packaging and the Innisfree Real Fit Lipstick is no exception. The design of the lipstick container is a bit more chubby than the previous Innisfree Color Glow and Creammellow Lipsticks, but it also has the small plastic part at the bottom where you can see the color of the lipstick. I chose shade 5 called “Sweet Twenty Red”, a cherry red shade and the boldest color of the 10 available shades.

The cardboard box of the lipstick is made of recycled paper and printed with soy ink. It contains the Korean description only, except from the one side showing the key features of this lipstick: light fitting, clear color, long-lasting, and camellia oil. The bullet of the lipstick is protected by a silver metal part. You will find a saying printed there: “A lipstick that instantly covers your lips with a clear color and without a heavy feeling.”.

The lipstick applies smoothly, but it doesn’t glide onto the skin like the previous lipsticks I was talking about earlier. On the other hand the pigmentation is really great and you will achieve a nice layer of color with only one stroke. It doesn’t settle into the liplines either, but looks very evenly when applied. It is not a matte lipstick, but has a sheen – not as glossy as the Color Glow or Creammellow Lipsticks. the bullet has a fruity scent, which is only noticeable when you directly sniff at it. On the lips it doesn’t have any scent or taste. It is not drying and you can feel that it contains some oil (camellia oil). But it is not moisturizing either. It also doesn’t last long, especially since it is not transfer-proof and as most lips it is not food-proof either.

If I compare the lipstick to the previous releases from Innisfree I like the previous ones more. They had perfectly moisturizing properties for the cold season. Regardless, the Innisfree Real Fit Lipstick is a good and solid lipstick, but it is not as special for me as the previous releases. I must say that I love the color range though. I saw a review on Rini Cecillia and I really liked the shade “Dried Rose” in her swatches. This would be a shade I would be tempted to buy, since it is such a pretty mauve/dusty rose color. If you like rose-colored shades you might want to check them out.

The Innisfree Real fit Lipstick is available at:

W2Bauty for 11US$ (use coupon code berries10 for 10% off sitewide with free shipping)

amazon.com for ~12 US$

Innisfree for 14US$ (15% coupon discount upon registration)

What’s your favorite lipstick from Innisfree?

♥ Pin It! ♥

5 Comments

asian cosmetics beauty PR Sample review TesterKorea

Review: Nakeup Face Waterking Cover Cushion | TesterKorea

9. March 2016

This is the product from the second round of products by TesterKorea I’m most excited to review, because of its reputation: the Nakeup Face Waterking Cover Cushion! It is also the last product from TesterKorea as 1st Real Tester. I hope you enjoyed the couple of reviews I shared and if you missed them out check my list at the end of this post.

First, some information about TesterKorea: if you know me and my blog for some time you will know that TesterKorea is my favorite online retailer for larger Kbeauty hauls. I’ve purchased products from them many times and they never failed me. Also, they are quite popular for offering many free samples and having a LARGE variety of samples for sale aswell. If you do not know a specific products and you want to test it first the place to recommend is TesterKorea. Also, they have a huge amount of different products from many brands, so you can be sure to find what you are looking for in most cases. Unlike other online retailers they do not offer free shipping, though, but their shipping is based on weight. The cheap prices of the products themselves totally balances the shipping costs in my eyes – especially for larger hauls. They even have a specific topic where you can request a product, if it is newly launched. They are also quite fast in listing the latest products from most brands. Considering the fact that I know they are a reliable retailer and have a good reputation makes me even more happy that I’m part of the 17 members of their 1st Real Tester round-up. I linked my previous reviews at the end of this post.

Nakeup Face is a Korean brand which is very new to me. I still cannot believe how many Korean cosmetic brands exist…It seems I’m always discovering a new brand. The brand name is a combination of Naked Face and No Makeup. Nakeup Face products should allow you to achieve a natural look and on the same time recover your face in a way that you feel comfortable with your naked face. They seem to have gained quite some popularity in Korea and there are some magazine appearances as well, according to the description of the Nakeup Face Waterking Cover Cushion. The Waterking Cover Cushion is a hydrating cushion foundation for creating flawless and radiant skin.

The square-shaped cushion compact of the Nakeup Face Waterking Cover Cushion comes packed in a cardboard box. The box contains Korean description only and unfortunately I do not have much information about the ingredients of the cushion. The key ingredients are propolis extract (vitalizing), aloe vera extract (moisturizing), rose-water (smoothing), and lotus extract (brightening). It also contains mineral water and has SPF 35 / PA++. Unlike other cushions the shape of this cushion compact is not round but square. It also has a silver material, making it also useable as mirror when closed. You will find a mirror on the inside of the lid as well.

Cushion foundations consist of a cushion soaked with the foundation / bb cream and a sponge /puff applicator which you press on the cushion in order to apply the foundation on your skin. The sponge for applying the foundation is a rubycell sponge with a black color. It has a dense structure and antibacterial properties. I would advise you to wash your sponge after a while or exchange it with a new one (there are plenty of sponges available online).

I think the square shape and the silver and black colors make this cushion look very luxurious and mature. I really like the design, although it is simple. The shade I’m showing you here is No. 23. There is a lighter color available as well, but 23 fits my skin color quite well. The container with the cushion can be removed from the case and there are refills available for this cushion.

The foundation is very creamy and by pressing lightly you will already receive more than enough of the product. The foundation has a rose scent, which I absolutely adore. It is not too strong, but very light. The plastic lid of the cushion container closes very tightly and keeps the cushion from drying out too quickly.

The Nakeup Face Waterking Cover Cushion has a medium coverage, which is buildable up to high coverage. It can be build up without a caking effect and this is also the claim it has. It combines foundation, concealer, and essence. Although it looks matte on the image below I would consider it to be semi-dewy, leaving a natural, but very pretty glow to the skin. It contains pearl particles for diffusing the light from any angle. My pictures really do not do the product enough justice here. The finish is really pretty and since it is semi-matte/ semi-dewy it is not as sticky as some other dewy cushions would be. You will feel a very slight tackyness, but it is hardly noticeable. The foundation covers up rednesses really good, and I even could use this on my dark circles. It needs touching up after some hours, especially around the nose and smilelines, so it is not 24 h lasting, but I didn’t expect that anyways :D It does not make the skin feel dry though.

I didn’t expect this cushion to be very special, but actually I really enjoy using this one. I’m using it quite often and I really like the semi-dewy finish and how it looks when freshly applied. Also, it has a really good coverage. The packaging design is also really pretty and I like to have this elegant looking cushion compact in my collection. The cushion contains 15 g and retails for 19600 Won (~16.61 US$) at TesterKorea. You can also get it together with a refill for 31600 Won (~26.77 US$). Did you know the brand Nakeup Face? What are your impressions?

Also, check out my previous reviews for TesterKorea:

Missha Lighting Tone Up Base

Nature Republic Body & Nature Provence Peach Body Butter

Proformula Skin Reset AHA 7 Lifting Pack

Missha Super Aqua Ice Tear Cream

Etude House Tint My Brows Gel

♥ Pin It! ♥

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://testerkorea.com/ which doesn’t influence me in providing my honest opinion on the products.

2 Comments

Older Posts

Newer Posts