makeup

Troiareuke In Depth Product Review – ‘Makeup Be Gone!’ ACSEN Oil Cut Cleansing

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Hey Guys!

This is going to be a lengthy and detailed review on three Troiareuke products. I separated each product into 3 post because all together it was too long. So at the bottom there are links to the other two products! I hope that will be helpful for you guys to read and navigate.

This brand is a branch from a bigger company called MK Universal. They have other spa brand products and spa services including Troipeel. I was gifted the Acsen Oil Cut Cleansing, Acsen Selemix Serum, and the Skin Complex Formula (H+ Cocktail Anti-Trouble Formula Ampoule) from the brand. I was first introduced to the brand at the Seoul Blogger Brunch that I attended in September this year. I knew that they were a spa brand and many of their clients go to treat acne and different skin problems. I was also gifted the Acsen UV Protector Essence, but I haven’t tried it yet since I have so many sunscreens open right now. Anyway, let’s get on with the review.

What’s with the name and what’s this brand about?

Troi-are-uke is a mouthful to say at first but after a while it rolls off the tongue. On their website they explain that -areuke means beginning in Greek, and with that they came up with ‘Troiareuke’ -the beginning with of prescription skincare cosmetics. They are proud of their 1:1 skincare prescription. I actually did a small survey and was matched with the Selemix Serum when they contacted me. They also take a holistic approach to skincare taking into consideration chromatherapy and aromatherapy.

ACSEN

Acsen is one of the Troiareuke skincare lines. It is a combination of two skin concerns, acne and sensitive. The main ingredient in this line is Centella Asiatica which is a great skin ingredient for skin recovery and regeneration. Another main ingredient is a combination of beansprout and magnolia tree bark which they call ‘Selemix An’, which is good for skin protection, recovery, and inflammation.

ACSEN Oil Cut Cleansing

This was the first product I used, since I wear a whole lotta makeup everyday, so I am super into cleansing products. My first impression just reading the packaging was that it was gonna be weak sauce! I love oil cleansers and it’s my preferred method of removing makeup. So when I saw that it was oil-free, my expectation was low, boy was I wrong! This is seriously SO GREAT. I love this cleanser so much! Before I go on let me just go over the general info.

The bottle contains 120ml, they do have a 300ml one as well, but I don’t think they sell the big one. The main ingredients are Papaya which is a natural exfoliant, Aloe Vera which calms and moisturizes, and Usnea extract (lichen) that is an anti-bacterial ingredient. It has a runny gel consistency and spreads easily over the face without any sticky or oily feeling. It uses a micro-emulsion technique that removes oil and dirt without irritating the skin.

This is a great cleanser for everyone, especially those of you who want the makeup removing power of an oil cleanser but without the oily feeling. I squeeze a coin size amount into my hands I rub it in to my skin for a minute and wash it off with warm water. I don’t have to second cleanse, because it takes everything off. I was so surprised and amazed when I used it the first time. It was so gentle and not drying or irritating. I would totally buy this with my own money and I would recommend this one to anyone. The 120ml one costs 38,000KRW, it’s pricy but if you’re not having to double cleanse then in a way you’re saving money on buying another cleansing product and you’ll be saving time as well.

They have a shop in Myeongdong across from exit 1 inside SkyPark Hotel and they have a Korean online shop.

Go to Selemix serum review!

Go to Healing Cocktail Mist review!

The Seoul Blogger Brunch 2017 – Official Oh My Gloss Blog Recap

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Hey friends!

I just want to share about an amazing blogger meet up that I attended in August. The official name of the event is the Seoul Blogger Brunch. Maybe you read my short recap on Instagram and the saw some photos from the event on my other social media account. I had such a wonderful time and I will tell you everything that happened!

Who, When, Where

The Seoul Blogger Brunch was hosted by blogger Star Lengas from www.87pages.com and also co-hosted by Dot Moore (www.sukiinseoul.com) and Mina Pierre (www.modeideale.com). It was on a hot hazy day on August 19th at a cozy restaurant in Gangnam, Seoul called Hearth. The interior was a European bistro style complete with a shelves of imported wine and lovely dried roses hanging from the ceiling. The warm lighting makes it a perfect place for a intimate gathering or a night cap. Also, the owner was very accommodating and served the hungry and thirsty bloggers without complaint! I would totally take my friends there for a wine night out.

 

Purpose & My Expectations

So, why have this Seoul Blogger Brunch? The purpose of the brunch was to network and link K-beauty brands to global influencers and bloggers. My first expectation when I got invited was something really low key and small where we would chit chat about K-beauty. However, that was not the case! It seriously blew my expectations out the window and it was a full on blogger/brand event. AWESOME! I would have loved an intimate gathering, but this was something else. I arrived a little early and I could see Star, Mina, and Dot lugging gift bags into the restaurant. My eyes were full from just witnessing the stacks of goodie bags. This event was LEGIT!

Soon after other bloggers arrived, some of whom I already knew and had befriended online. It was so wonderful to finally meet some of them in person! Insta messaging and comments can do so much and very limiting. Being able to talk to them in person was a million times better.The number of Seoul bloggers that attended were quite many so I had to get out of my introvert shell and make friends! To be honest though, it was very easy for me talk to people because they were so friendly and chill. I was so happy I was able to meet different types of bloggers, not just in beauty. There were travel, fashion, and lifestyle blogger/vloggers. They definitely were inspiring me to step out of my beauty comfort zone and try lifestyle and travel blogging in the future. Networking with fellow bloggers was the best part of the Seoul Blogger Brunch for me. It really gave me insight into these amazing boss women and how well they were capturing and living life to the fullest in a foreign country! 

Photo by Soo Choi

Brands

It would be remiss if I didn’t talk about the brands. The generous sponsors of the event were Troiareuke, Seoul Cosmetic Surgery, and Be Mused Korea. Other brands that came were Tiam and Eunogo. Each of them gave a short introduction and I was great to learn more about their brand, product, and services. They organized gift bags for the bloggers and they were so kind to try so many of their products. There were also giveaways too, which was very entertaining to a part of. Other brands that contributed in the goodie bags were Cosrx, HYGGEE, Wish Formula, Wishtrend, Banobagi Hospital and Grace Plastic Surgery, featured clinics from Seoul Cosmetic Surgery. I will be testing out and reviewing these gifts soon! I can’t wait to share my thoughts about them to you guys.

Last Thoughts

I CAN’T WAIT FOR THE NEXT SEOUL BLOGGER BRUNCH! I really hope that it will be an annual thing. I love meeting new bloggers and It’s such a great way to build and strengthen a community of strong independent women, wherever they’re from. Also, it was a great way to connect with brands personally.

Vanav Cover & Clean Fit – 2 in1 Makeup and Cleansing Device

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Hey guys!

It has been a while! I’m back from my trip to Osaka, Japan and I am ready to sit and write a review on a very special device from Vanav. This is Korean brand that specializes in developing makeup and skincare technology. I was really lucky to receive from the K-Beauty Expo to try out the Vanav Cover & Clean Fit device. You can use this to apply your makeup and also cleanse your skin! How awesome is that? Let’s start with the specs.

Specs

First, the device comes in a orange box that contains one cleansing brush head, one makeup brush head, 6 AAA batteries, and the Cover & Clean Fit body. It great that batteries are included. It uses 3 AAA batteries and there isn’t a need to charge it. The brushes are really soft and made with good quality bristles. There are 3 vibration modes and 1 beep signals low vibration, 2 beeps is normal vibration, and 3 beeps signals the high vibration. It turns off automatically after 3 mins. You can turn it off by holding down the power button. The weight is 158g so it does have some weight. The heads are easily detachable the shorter parallel edge goes on the bottom, following the device shape.

Makeup Performance

Hmmm, what can I say… It works! It doesn’t make your foundation streaky it works with cream, stick, and liquid foundation. It’s a little tricky to get around your nose and eye area. The finished look is very nice and the vibration helps the foundation to spread out evenly. The only thing I have an issue with is that it makes my nose tickle so much! The best way to use it is to let the skin feel the vibration rather than pressing it down onto the skin. It’s less work for me because I can just glide the brush without having to tap and blend a hundred times. It’s also gentle since I’m not rubbing the brush down on the skin. You can use this concealer, cream contour, and even cream blusher.

Cleansing Performance

This is a great tool to use during a second cleanse. First cleanse would be to take the makeup off and then go in with a foam cleanser and spread the foam over the skin and massage and wipe away the foam with the cleansing brush head with the desired vibration. You can also squeeze some of the cleansing product on the brush head and wet skin and cleanse that way without doing a first cleanse. This way it creates the bubbles on the skin. I really really liked it as a cleansing tool, much more than I did a makeup one. I’m just more finicky with how I like to apply my makeup.

Overall

This gets a two thumbs up from me! I does what it says and performed really well. The price is a bit steep 148,000KRW, but still much cheaper than others similar beauty tools on the market. I like how you can use the device in the bathroom and then take it to the vanity. You can learn more on the Vanav website at www.Vanav.co.kr. They have four other devices and their newest device UP5 looks so cool! I really want to try that in the future.

Thank you for joining me in this review and I hope you will come back to read my next review soon! Again, this product was sent to me by the K-Beauty Expo as their beauty editor, all opinions are my own as always. Thanks for reading.

Oka 7 Collection Sheet Mask Review

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Hello!

It’s time for a sheet mask review. I got a bundle of 7 sheet masks from a brand called Oka. This brand specializes in different needs for the skin as well as for men and children. The packaging is simple yet very stylish. Each mask has a character on the front and each drawn with a skin issue that the sheet mask will help remedy. Also each of the characters have different colored lips, so it makes it fun and easy to choose which mask you need. All of them are a moisturizing masks with added ingredients for specific care. All of the sheets are 100% cellulose, contains an aroma essential oil, and uses natural ingredients. The ingredient list is very short so I feel assured that it’s not filled with unnecessary ingredients. I’ve tried all of them except for the one for men, I gave it to my brother to review for me. I’m ready to tell you all about them!

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Moisture

I will start with the basic mask in the line. Boosting Moisture Up Sheet Mask helps with moisturizing and nourishing. The essential oil in this mask is bergamot oil which reminded me of Earl grey tea. Notable ingredients include aloe vera leaf extract, artemisia vulgaris extract, and witch hazel extract. It did say that it has sunflower oil in it, but I couldn’t find it on the list. The mask is moisturizing and I would say a very good mask everyday. No sticky feeling and the sheet didn’t dry out.

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Freckle

The next mask is the Diet My Freckles Sheet Mask. This mask helps to brighten and soothe the skin after prolonged sun exposure. This has grapefruit aroma essential oil. The niacinamide for whitening and the catechins in the green tea extract will help soothe the skin. This mask was as well and my skin felt hydrated and soothed.

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Pore Care

The third mask I tried was the Buckle Up The Pore Sheet Mask. This is formulated to help stretched out pores with ingredients like witch hazel, Artemisia Vulgaris extract, and green tea extract. It has tea tree extract as it’s essential oil so it has a very cooling aroma. This one was moisturizing and my pores felt very refreshed, but not much of a miracle pore tightening mask.

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Brightening

The next mask on the list is Pump the Brightening Up Sheet Mask. This is a whitening mask with niacinamide. This one has lime oil as it’s aroma. It has sunflower seed oil for moisturization. I didn’t really like this one as much as I did the others. I didn’t see a big difference in the brightening of my skin.

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Anti-wrinkle

The next mask is the last woman character mask int this line. The Cheers to Anti-Wrinkle Sheet Mask was my favorite out of all the ones I tried. This one has a milky essence and it smells like rosemary. It contains adenosine for wrinkle treatment. It also has avocado seed oil for nourishment and softening the skin. It also has royal jelly which give the skin extra care. I would recommend this mask if I had to choose only one of these to you.

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Kids & Men

The next two mask are for men and children. The Stay Cool Sheet Mask I gave to my brother to review for me. He said that the essence was too watery and kept dripping. However he did say it was very cooling, soothed and hydrated. The last mask in the bundle is the Filling With Honey Sheet Mask. It has a very cute baby face on front. I tried this mask even though it did not fit my face it’s supposed to fit ages 5-10. I actually would like this mask in an adult sheet mask size. It has lavender oil and honey extract. My skin felt hydrated and I think it would be a great mask to use as a family.

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My overall impressions of these masks are that I like them! These are great for everyday use. They’re also quite fun because of the characters on the packaging. I can say that the ingredients in the masks are also good quality and not much goes into them, so its safe to say that I know what I am putting on my skin. These can be bought on www.oka-mall.co.kr.Each mask costs 3,000KRW.

These were sent to my by the K-Beauty Expo for review purposes. I have full charge of my opinions about the products they send me. I can assure that everything I say is 100% fo realz!

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VT Real Collagen Pact With Visible Collagen Ribbons

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Hey friends!

This post is about the VT Real Collagen Pact. VT was launched in 2016 and was founded by Gonsen who also launched Vant 36.5, but no longer under Gonsen’s distribution. The concept of the VT brand is fast K-beauty and a trendy cosmetic. It can be seen a lot on social media and sponsored by many K-stars and influencers. So of course, I had to see if it was worth the hype. It was also featured on Get it Beauty. The Real Collagen Pact was launched earlier this year.

Packaging

The packaging is trendy yet very simple. The gold foiling gives it a luxurious look and the glossy shimmery pink cover adds a sophisticated girly charm. The size of the case is on the wider side. Inside you have your mirror, puff, and pact. When you open the protective cover of the pact you you can see the beautifully marbleized collagen pact. The yellow ribbon is the collagen ampoule.

Formula and Wear

The sun protection is SPF 50+PA+++ and helps with wrinkles, whitening, fight free radicals. The sunscreen base is a mixture of physical and chemical. The chemicals in this cushion especially stings my eyes. I’ve never had a problem with regular cushions, but this one seems to be a bit strong. It goes away after a bit but when I go to touch up around my eyes it bothers me again. I’ve had laser eye surgery so my eyes are more sensitive now. It has skin emollient like hydrolyzed castor oil, hydrolyzed collagen (0.o1ppm). The texture if you rub it on to the skin with your fingers it feels gritty. I’m not sure why. It does have silica in it so it could be that. I really have no idea, but when you apply it to the face it looks smooth. The formula is very moisturizing and slightly on the sticky and heavy side. The coverage is light to med. The shade I got was #23 and I would say its a neutral leaning yellow. It was a pretty good match with my skin shade, just a tad lighter.

At first when you apply it it looks really nice and glowy, but as the day goes on it seems to slip around. I would scratch my nose and you see the product bunched up. I do have to touch up more than once when I wear this on my skin. It transfers a lot too!

Verdict

I think I bought this in the wrong season. The humid summer weather is not a good measure of its moisturising abilities. This would be a good fall to winter and winter to spring pact. However, I still don’t think this is a pact worth getting. It has too many cons for what it’s worth for me to recommend it or to repurchase. Maybe my mind will change after testing it in the winter For oily and combination skin types this is no go for sure. Dry skin yes, but not for all seasons. It sells for 32,000KRW, I got it on sale for around 24,000KRW.

I will update this post once I’ve tried it during the colder and drier months!

Color Live Tints from Aritaum That Will Make Any Lips Look Pretty!

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Hi!

Could it be? A second review in one week for Oh My Gloss Blog? Yes! I have been sorting out some time to post regularly again, yay! Today’s review is about the Color Live Tints from Aritaum that I have been wearing religiously! If you follow me on my social media accounts you can see why! They are the prettiest tints!

Old Tint vs. New Tint Comparison


These tints were released early this year 2017 and it has been said that this is an upgraded version of the Color Lasting Tint that Aritaum had before. The lasting tints had 15 shades but the color live tints have the 12. The packaging is more simple, and personally I like the Color Live one more than I do the Color Lasting. The Color Live has a cute little heart window to see the actual color inside and is a good way to see if you need to stock up again, he he. The applicator is also different from the old tints. The Color lasting one had a donut shape but the color lasting one is a long doe foot tip. I’m not sure about the texture and wear of the color lasting tints but from what I’ve heard and read they say that it’s a better quality than before. These actually remind me of the Yves Saint Laurent Vinyl Lip Tints, very similar color shades and number of choices, all black packaging with window, similar texture and shine. So I guess you could say these are a dupe!

Formulation/Pigmentation/Application

The Live is actually an acronym for its formulation!

Lightness in texture

Intense color and lasting

Various colors to compliment all skin tones

Effective glossiness ( that one is a bit of a stretch lol)


I have to agree that all of its description is true! It’s not sticky at all and it doesn’t feel like I have anything on my lips. Also the texture is a creamy mousse-gel formula so the application is very silky and smooth. The pigmentation on these are also really good. You get the color that you see. It’s great for full lips or gradation lips.
The colors that are available are all so pretty! Aritaum did a really good job of picking colors that are trendy yet will look good on anyone. Also the color’s aren’t just you typical coral, red, pink, and orange that you might get at some road shops. I guess I want to say that the colors are more sophisticated.


These tints do leave a stain and last quite a while, but if you’re eating greasy foods then it will fade. When it does it wasn’t too splotchy or uneven, so if you do forget to reapply it won’t look terrible. I also like the glossy formula, it hydrates my lips and it makes them look healthy. Especially perfect for spring and summer. The glossiness stays for a while to, but again eating an drinking will fade it.


The application is also very easy and the color adheres well and it doesn’t bleed, or give be the yogurt effect – gunk around the inside of the lips. The doe foot applicator makes it easy to line the outer lip for a full lip look. There is a fruity cosmetic smell which I don’t mind but some of you might not like it. There isn’t a bad perfumy taste either.

Overall

I LOVE THESE TINTS! They are great quality and very affordable. I already bought four, but I can’t seem to find one of them. Aritaum in Korea sometimes have these 1+1 sales on tints and if they do another sale I will probably get more and stock up on some of my favorite shades like coral on top!

Etude House – Any Cushion All Day Perfect Review

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All Day Perfect VS. Cream Filter

Hey everyone! I’ve tested it and this is an overdue review post but I’m finally getting some time to write my thoughts on it! The Etude House came out with their new cushion is April. Their previous cushion before the All Day Perfect was the Cream Filter one, which I loved and still do. That one is not so great if you want to hide any blemishes, but if you’re looking for a light coverage cushion that’s hydrating that won’t break your budget then it’s great! The All Day Perfect cushion is a little bit different. It has much more coverage and it’s slightly less hydrating. The All Day perfect has 6 different shades to choose from while the Cream Filter has 5. I got the shade in Tan with neutral base.

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17,22,23 have neutral undertones, 19 & 21 have pink undertone, and 21 has a yellow undertone.                   Taken from Etude House

 Specs & Formula

The All Day Perfect cushion has a slim case and the box does include a refill, it costs 20,000KRW. The puff inside is nice and thick and super soft. It’s supposed to give you a more coverage and help with better application. You can buy it separately for 2,500KRW. It has a three point locking system and a mirror inside. The cushion inside holds 14g/ 0.49 oz. The scent is a light fresh floral, typical of most Etude House products. It has SPF50+ PA+++, helps with wrinkle care, and whitening. Also, the cushion claims to give high coverage, thin adherence, and long lasting with its Roll-Spread Technology.

How was it?

I’ve been testing it out on and off for about two weeks. The shade is still a little light, but manageable. I  The coverage is very good, it covered my redness on my nose after I shamefully squeezed it to get my whiteheads out (it’s really bad for your skin and pores, don’t do it!) also it covered my dark circles really nicely, I only needed a little bit of concealer. The puff is really nice, I would get buy it separately for my other cushions. The formula wasn’t drying, but still I could feel that I wouldn’t wear this in the colder months. I also think if you’re on the oily side it might still be too creamy for your liking. At first application it looks great! For me I would say the first 4-5 hours, it looked fine. Then as the hours keep passing I could see it clump around my nose and start to separate above the lip and between my brows. However, nothing has moved or settled into fine lines. It’s a weird mixture of looking great in on larger areas of my face like cheeks, chin, forehead, but just in the little areas you could see it starting to break. As for the Cream Filter the formula moves around a bit because it’s creamy, but this one stays in place but later it breaks because it can’t move around as much. Does that make sense? Moving on, I did end up fixing around those areas and I didn’t notice any difficulty layering over it, it didn’t look cakey or thick. There wasn’t any darkening and it faded very little over the whole day.

My Final Thoughts

I would say that the name is misleading. It really looks great in the beginning, but as you wear it throughout the day it is starts to break. I bought this for 9,900KRW while it was on promotion. For 20,000KRW retail price though I don’t think it’s worth it. I’d rather pay more and get the IOPE Air Cushion Cover which comes with refill or the Missha The Original Tension Pact in Perfect Cover which is cheaper and wears better.

*Affiliate Link* – If you’d still like to try it out for yourself then here’s a link where you can find the best price on Amazon – Etude House Any Cushion All Day Perfect SPF50+/PA+++ (Beige)

 

 

NEW 2017 IOPE AIR CUSHION – Cover Review

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Hey folks! Having a great day? I hope so! I am finally sitting down to write a review on the 2017 new IOPE Air Cushion! Last year IOPE released their 3rd generation of the cushions. Last year’s line included 4 different types – moisture lasting, intense cover, natural, and matte long wear. There were 5 different shades available 13, warm/natural 21, and warm/natural 23. This shade system was to make everything much easier but from the comments that I got on my old post, it made people even more confused about what color to get (sorry for not responding to some of your shade questions!) I think IOPE realized the confusion and they revamped the whole shade system which I will get into later. So last year I bought the matte long wear and this time I bought the cover version. They got rid of the moisture lasting and natural glow and replaced it with cover and natural. That was a loaded intro, so let me break it down now!

batch_DSC00730Packaging and Cushion

So the packaging is the same for the intense cover and matte long wear, but for the cover and natural cushion, they changed the color to a silvery pearl base and a mirrorball-holo face. It’s so pretty!!! I just like having it on my desk and look at it like a weird makeup-obsessed-Gollum creature that I am. My preciousssss…! The ring that goes around the rim is silver and the intense cover is the only one with a rose gold ring. The cushion inside is different than the IC (intense cover) and MLW (matte long wear). The circular nodes are a little bigger and porous. The reasoning behind it is that the bigger 3D circles pump more hydrating ingredients so that your skin is more moisturized. I really don’t know if that is scientifically proven, but sure, okay. I don’t really feel a great difference, but because the holes in the circular cells are bigger, the easier it is for the hydrating liquids to surface. That’s how I am interpreting their idea. While the smaller cells in the IC and MLW cushions offer a light and even stippling effect.

batch_DSC00736Smell and Formula

The cushion is SPF50+/PA+++, whitening, and anti-wrinkle. The scent is same as last years cushion from what I remember, an overall fresh with a slight powdery after smell. The main formula for the cover and natural cushion is a mix of IOPE’s trademarked Bio water, trehalose, a moisture-retaining ingredient, and 3D prism pearl. This combo creates a trademarked formula called Air prism water. The formula is very hydrating and not at all oily or greasy feeling. When you apply it has a very fresh moist feeling and then it dries down to a comfortable to wear texture. Also, there isn’t any visible shimmer, pearlescence, or glitter so you can be assured that you won’t actually look like a disco ball. Just a glowy ball 🙂

batch_DSC00742Finish and Wear

The finish is a glowy finish but it looks very natural and not greasy looking. For my dry skin, it looks SO GOOD! The glow is very long lasting as well. The coverage is not a very high coverage, up to medium coverage. For redness, red spots, and dark circles you need a bit of help from a concealer. But as for freckles and things it gives a nice thin layer of coverage. As it dries and throughout the day it wears nicely without much fading. I could go all day without any touch ups and still look okay. It also doesn’t accentuate the pores and fine lines a lot, but I do powder up under the eyes and nose area, for extra coverage and lasting wear. I would give the finish a 5/5, coverage a 4/5, and wear 4.5/5.

batch_DSC00745Shades

The shades are, I hope/think, much easier to figure out than last years. Ther are 4 shades 13 ivory, 21 cool vanilla (brighter, pinker 21), 21 vanilla (natural yellow toned 21 shade), and  23 beige (yellow toned 23). I bought the 23 beige and compared to the shade, 23W, I got last year it’s a bit toned down and less light. I can get away with wearing it, the last IOPE cushion I gave away to my mom because after I reviewed it, I felt it was a bit too light for me in the summer and it would be too dry for me in any other season. The beige 23 is a shade lighter than my MAC NC30 skin. I wish they’d came out with a 25 like other brands are doing these days.

batch_DSC00727Final Thoughts

Overall I really like this one much better than the matte long wear I bought last year, it suits my dry skin and I really love the natural glowy finish. For 42,000KRW (about 36USD) you get the case with the cushion and puff and an extra refill with a puff. What do you think about this generation of the IOPE Air Cushion? Do you think you will try it? Thanks for reading!

Kocostar Masks – Head to Toe Comprehensive Review!

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Hi! If you don’t follow on social media, I was picked to be an official beauty editor for the K-Beauty Expo 2017! I am very happy to say that this is the first official review as their beauty editor. The product I am reviewing in this post are the Kocostar masks. Kocostar is a K-beauty brand that specializes in home beauty treatments, getting the salon experience with time, budget, and user-friendly masks. I received 7 different types of masks to try from head to toe! I have reviewed Kocostar masks in the past like the Slice Mask Sheet, gold hydrogel patches, and their hair mask. In this review I’ll be reviewing each mask I received from head to toe (except for the Slice Mask Sheet since I already have a post on it). Are you ready? Let’s start from the top!

Face Masks

batch_Camellia - Kocostar

Camellia Happy Mask – This mask is for moisturizing and soothing. Its ingredients include Camellia seed oil, Camellia flower extract, green tea extract, aloe vera extract, and Centella extract. The mask sheet is thin but holds a lot of essence. It’s super soft and adheres to the face well without slipping around. The color is slightly tinted pink because of the Camellia seed oil. It smells SO good, it might be a bit perfumy to some but I really loved the floral sweet smell. There was also a lot of essence left over in the pouch as well, which I used on my neck and decolletage. The sheet remained hydrated well over 30 mins and there was no sticky feeling after the mask. It has a very fresh moisturized feeling to it. My skin felt soothed and soft to the touch. This mask is 3,000KRW. Overall score perfect 5/5!

batch_birds nest - Kocostar

Bird’s Nest Silk Fiber Mask – Korean beauty wouldn’t be complete without with an animal derived product! This one is the very beautiful sounding but if your research what birds nests are made of its bird saliva. Awesome. Some people eat it, I just like to soak up the juices on my skin! The thin sheet is made up of 95% Eucalyptus tree fiber and 5% silk so the mask sheet itself is a treat. It’s very soft and plush on the skin and holds the essence well that it doesn’t drip. It fits very snug on the face. The essence is a little bit thicker than your usual liquid essence. It also has a slightly sticky residue but after 5-10 mins it just feels normal. It gave an awesome glow and brighter tone afterward. The smell is very fresh and not very strong. This mask is 2,500KRW. Overall 4.5/5! I had to shave half a point for stickiness.

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Flower Mask Sheet – This one is just like the Slice Mask Sheets except they are flower versions. They are THE prettiest mask ever! Also very fun to place them wherever you want. One thing is that there isn’t enough to cover the whole face, but the point of these masks are to use them on certain areas that need extra care or on larger parts of the body. You can use it as a lip mask, dry spots, and I guess even your nippy-nips! Haha. You can mix and match with different patch masks. There are 3 types of flowers you can try sunflower, tulip, and rose. I got the sunflower one which helps with skin elasticity and firmness. I have never smelled a sunflower so I can’t say for sure that the mask smells like it, but I can say that it is a pleasant light floral scent. The mask has much skin hydrating, calming, and reviving ingredients such as sunflower extract, milk protein, witch hazel, hydrolyzed soy protein, common purslane extract, glasswort extract, summer lilac extract, and white willow bark extract. I really liked using this mask because it was easy to apply, fun to use, and gave me instant hydration and soft skin! This mask is 2,500KRW. Overall I give it a 5/5!

Body

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The cucumber slice mask is reviewed in another post so click any of the colored links. Boobie patches no bueno.

W Line Hydrogel Breast Pack –  First there won’t be before and after pictures for this one hahaha! Anyway, I tried it and it didn’t do much for me because first, you need to do it regularly, and I only had one to try. Also, I just don’t care for packs like these. Too gimmicky for me. The hydrogel is sticky enough to stay on the skin, but if there is a lot of movement then it kinda peels off, maybe it’s because I have small breasticles there wasn’t enough the hydrogel could hold on to… lol. It’s very cold when you apply it at first. After an hour I took it off and it didn’t do much, my boobies felt the same, not hydrated. and after a little bit, they skin started to itch around where the edge of the sheet was. It wasn’t a very bad itch but itchy enough to suspect that it’s not for me. This mask is 2,500KRW. Overall I give it a 0/5.

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Hand Moisture Pack – This hand mask was such a nice little treat! My hands get pretty dry as well as my nails and I like how this is such an easy way to maintain my hands. Just slip them on, secure with the pre-attached sticker, and let your hands soak up the moisturizing ingredients. It has 10 different natural extracts such as licorice, green tea, witch hazel, gold, and mallow. Also 13 different kinds of moisturizing ingredients such as shea butter, argan tree kernel oil, meadow seafoam oil, cacao seed butter, and camellia extract. My hands didn’t feel greasy or oily afterward. It felt moisturized and really soft! I loved it so much. Also, I was able to use my phone while I still had the gloves on. They have three different glove colors to choose from too. This mask is 2,500KRW. Overall I give it a 5/5!

batch_Foot - Kocostar

Foot Moisture Pack –  This one is pretty much the same concept as the Hand Moisture Pack. Very easy to use Perfect for sandal weather. Mini foot spa at home! It has 9 kinds of skin-repairing ingredients like cactus extract, lavender extract, chamomile extract, and spirulina extract. Also 9 kinds of moisturizing ingredients like safflower seed oil, shea butter, cucumber extract, glycerin, aloe vera, and argan seed oil. It also includes natural exfoliants like white willow bark extract and apple extract. Just like the hand pack, my feet didn’t feel greasy and it felt very soft and smooth afterward. This mask is 2,500KRW.  I give this a 5/5 as well!

I hope you enjoyed this list of different masks and packs you can try from Kocostar! You can purchase on their website www.kocostar.co.kr, or at Sephora, El Corte Ingles, La Rinascente, Urban Outfitters, Anthropologie, ASOS, Beautybay.com, Accessorize, Forever21, and American Eagle Outfitters.

*Just a disclaimer- I don’t get paid to do these review nor do I get any profit if you click on any links, just my honest reviews! Cross my heart (and hope to die).

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💨🙅🏻🌫Pollution Cushion – Pony Effect Defense Longwear Cushion Foundation Review

Categories makeup4 Comments on 💨🙅🏻🌫Pollution Cushion – Pony Effect Defense Longwear Cushion Foundation Review

Hi guys! Last week Seoul had the second worst air quality ever! My skin, throat, lungs, eyes, and nose were all congested. The air quality is a little better because of the rain today, but dust season and pollution will be here to stay in busy little Seoul. So why am I talking about air quality and pollution? It’s because I am reviewing the newest cushion from Pony Effect! The Defense Longwear Cushion was released mid-March and it was a perfect time to test this out on the high pollution days like last week.

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I bought this on the Memebox app which I uncontrollably look through every hour or so. I bought it while it was on promotion and got a small discount and a free mirror (wahoo!) The retail price is 42,000KRW (about 37.00USD). The cushion comes with a refill with an extra puff. The packaging is a thinnish square compact with a prismatic silver coating.It’s very pretty under the light however, the coating is a bit thin so mine is already a little scratched up around the corners. The puff is a spongey type very squishy and flexible. I like the puff, but don’t be fooled about the amount of product it absorbs! One weak dab on the cushion and it looks like you need to dab some more, but the product is already sucked into the sponge.

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Pony also released new darker shades so I jumped to get my hands on a cushion that matched my skin tone. Sand was the color I got it’s supposed to be for tanned skin *laughs* and in the tradition of Korean skin color numbers this is number 25. It’s still a half shade lighter than my natural skin tone. It has a yellowy-faintly peach undertone so if you’re on the cool dark tone side then this color, no matter how ‘dark’ it is, will not look good on you. For me, it was fine but still not a perfect match. I do appreciate the brand for looking out for darker Asian skin girls like me.

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There is a light herbally-floral scent which goes away after application. The formula is very thin but if you layer it on it can look like a medium coverage foundation. It covers 40% if my dark circles and 50% redness from pimples. The cushion is whitening, has wrinkle care, and is SPF 50+/PA+++. Also it has been tested on the absorption of dust onto the skin with a special Arabian Cotton complex that has large amounts of Phyto-chemical that defends the skin from outside pollutants. I really can’t tell the difference if it’s really defending my skin from dust, but it hasn’t irritated my skin so that’s a good sign. It also has lotus flower extract to revitalize tired skin.

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The finish is not matte and at first, it starts with a soft satiny glow but later after 4-5 hours it drys down. The cushion isn’t very hydrating for dry skin types like myself, it felt and looked dry. This also transferred to clothing easily and settled into fine lines, so longevity was not very good. It does accentuate dry patches so exfoliating is a must if you are going to put this on! I did find some success in wetting the sponge first and it felt a bit more hydrating-ish. With this one, I have to fix it regularly or it made my skin look old.

 

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This is 3 hours after application. It looks like the end of the day…

 

 

Overall, would I repurchase? N to the O, no! It’s was really mediocre and it’s not the best for my dry skin.  This was my first Pony Effect cushion and even thought this wasn’t a showstopper for me I wonder how the other two cushions compare. If I do purchase the other two I’ll write a comparison review!

Thank you for reading this review lemme know if you have any questions or even suggestions for future posts in the comments section!