Etude House Summer 2014 Princess Happy Ending

Riding on the popularity of anything princess, one of my favorite Korean brand, Etude House has launched a princess themed collection too!

The Princess Happy Ending series is related to the Disney's famous princesses line-up, even though i dont see any likeness of Snow, Belle, Cinderela and Jasmine themselves in the make up packaging shots so far... *

It is divided to 4 themes: Snow White, Cinderella, Belle and Jasmine. Each offers different type set of make ups. I can't decide whether I love Jasmine or Belle more... What about you?

Update: I managed to purchase Belle's blush (review here) and Cinderella's eyeshadow.

(etude.co.kr)

*update: earlier I thought the collection is not related to Disney. But then I saw Disney(c) logo... 

Etude House Hair Wax & BB Cream for Men

Yes, I don’t need any wax… but I just cant take my eyes of these cute wax packaging by Etude House. Cant believe this products are meant for the boys!

These cute babies comes in 3 variants:

Magenta – Shiny Dandy is glossy wax for short hair

Blue – Natural Two Cut is designed to add volume for medium/longer hair

Grey – Matte Mohican is matte clay for short/medium hair

I am so tempted to get one of these for myself!

Not only that, they also released BB cream for guys: Good Guy -moisturizing BB cream for  natural look and Bad Guy for Sebum control & coverage. Fun!

(picture from etude.co.kr)

Kanebo Kate Mineral BB Gel Cream SPF 30 PA++ in OC-C

I have been making this baby a staple of my daily make up routine for a while now… yet I haven’t made a proper review… so, here it is…

Honestly, I couldn’t remember when did Kate launched this one… I think it is part of their spring 2012 release. It contains mineral powder, moisturizing complexes and collagen. Oh, it’s alcohol free too! Like any good Japanese base make up … it has SPF and PA thrown in.

The texture is … well… gel cream. Easily blended, easily set, with sheer coverage. 

What I love the most about this Gel Cream is the matte yet fresh look it gives me. My face still get oily as usual ( I can feel it), but it somehow still manage to make me look fresh. No grayish cast too.  Lovely. 

Unfortunately it only comes in 3 shades OC-B, OC-C and OC-D. this wont be suitable for those with deeper skin tones…

Bottomline…

I am loving it. Unless something better comes along, I will repurchase this when I run out.

Things I Finished This Month...

Things I finished this month…

For me and my hoarding instinct, it is very difficult to finish cosmetics. I rarely, if ever, finished even a tub of lipstick or hit the pan on eye shadows. Yet I keep buying for more… look at that pretty color! What a cute packaging! Fabulous formula! Or simply, I think I need a back up blue-pink with little pearly shimmer gloss… haha…

This month, I finished…

Stila Lip Glaze in apricot 08

Yeah! A gloss finished! I know why I manage finish this one… this is my resident in-office gloss. The one and only gloss on the table. Apricot is sheer peachy-apricot with just a hint of shimmer. It doesn’t contribute any color when worn alone or on top of lippie. The finish is super glossy, yet the shimmer is not noticeable when worn. I find the formula to be a little thick, but not as thick as some MAC lipglasses I owned. In the beginning I love the click pen packaging, but come to hate it. Too much product this time. Now too little product! I really have to learn how to control the click pen.

Sample Sized Skin 79 BB Diamond The Prestige Beblesh Balm

I got this one in a box set of four. Been hearing a lot about Skin 79 BB Creams, but I dont think I want to commit to a full bottle, hence the set. As usual, BB creams has lots of claims: whitening, erasing fine lines, hydrating, protecting against environmental aggressors… and the list goes on. This one is okay, doesn’t address my problem (oily T zone), but I like the coverage just fine. It gives me natural look. But I wont repurchase or commit to a full sized product…

Biore make up remover oil

I forgot what is the exact name of this Biore make up cleanser oil. This was one of my first tries of oil cleansers. Good enough for light make up cleansing. It takes a little massaging and effort to remove my favorite MAC liquidlast. As I have found and tried quite a few other brands, this is no longer a favorite. I used it when I am having lazy days make up (bb cream, blush, eye liner). Easy to use, but wont repurchase

Crabtree & Evelyn Nantucket Briar Hand Therapy

Again, I got this one as part of a hand therapy set. I finished the other tubs. The main difference in Crabtree & Evelyn Hand Therapy range is just the fragrance. I don’t see difference in texture or ‘feeling’ when used this one or Rose or Summer Hill or other fragranced Hand Therapy. The cream is thick and creamy, gets absorbed easily. However, it does feel a little siliconey (it does list silicone products in the ingredient list). After washing/rinsing my hand, I do feel like there’s a layer of something on my hand. Which make me decide not to repurchase, even though I like Summer Hill fragrance so much…

Tony Moly Peach Anti Aging Hand Cream

Ah...part of my fruit shaped stash! Honestly, got this just because I havent got nice peach in my stash! The cream is thick and creamy, yet get absorbed easily. frangranced like peaches of course. I like the way the cream moisturizes my hands without leaving my skin feels like there's a film on top of it. Strange thing though, the cream starts creamy and easily absorbed, but as i approached the bottom, i strongly feel the cream is getting more dense and harder to absorb... it even pills (forms soft balls) on the last day i used it...definitely not gonna repurchase this!

Skinfood Red Orange Jelly BB SPF 20 PA++

This one is part of skin food's red orange series. I just can't stop adoring hr orange-rose gold design of this series.

This essentially a jelly pudding textured bb cream. The texture really remind me of soft chocolate mousse dessert. Yum! And I just love the fact that it sits in a frosted glass jar. The bb jelly promises moisturizing benefits.

Now, one thing that really disappoints me is the fact that it doesn't come with it's own spatula or something I can use to pick up the jelly with. I just don't like the idea of dipping my fingers into a jar of foundation.

My disappointment aside, I actually love this product! It is light and blends nicely and smoothly. I just love to play with the texture.it gives me light medium coverage, just the way I like my bb cream to be. However, it is not as moisturizing as I expected moisturizing products to be. Yet, I enjoyed it...since it gives me fresh yet matte skin.not only looking fresh, but also feeling fresh! I need to blot only after 3 -4 hours.

 Sensitive skin, please beware, as this product is scented with fresh orange fragrance. The scent disappears after blending thou.

Bottomline,
This is really something I am going to wear daily. The texture is fun, the finish is matte and fresh. I am soooo going to repurchase. Unfortunately it only comes in 2 shades...just like most other Korean brands. So, deeper skin toned beauties won't be able to enjoy this as much as I do...what a pity

Etude House SHINI STAR Clear BB Lotion SPF20/PA++:

ShiniStar is spring 2012 release from korean brand, Etude House. It is endorsed by a famous korean boy band, SHINee.Even though i am not familiar with SHINee...I am drawn by its cute packaging!

Aside from this BB cream, I also got myself the Clear Pact (compact powder) in 2 Lavender.

Clear BB Lotion promises moist, brightened yet neutral look, while cover excess sebum and control the skin to promote healthy tone. Like the Clear Pact, they claim to contain colostrum for moisturizing properties.

I do think this product suits its name... BB Lotion! It is more moisturizing than most BB cream I owned with lighter coverage. Feels more like tinted moisturizer than BB cream. Count me a little disappointed as it doesnt help with my oil control issue, but it feels comfortable to wear-not too overly oily.

Bottomline...
Even though it does nothing to control my sebum, I still like this product- as it is light and moisturizing. Suitable for our current weather (plenty of sun with rain here and there). THose with fair complexion will enjoy this, but those with deeper skin tone... might not get a perfect match here.

Quick Post: Etude House Shini Star Clear BB Lotion SPF 20 PA++ Whitening & Shini Star Clear Pact in Lavender 2

Leave it to Korean cosmetic brand to slap boy band as their brand ambassador and succeed… just see Etude House and its Spring 2012 release. Seems like the favorite Sandara Park is taking a lil break and SHINee, a Korean boyband is taking the helm now! Come ShiniStar collection! And I am excited!

Now, I don’t even know how SHINee sounds like… but I am positively in love with the packaging! Look at these baby-tiffany blue compact and bb cream packaging… and those diamond illustrations are just pretty. I honestly don’t need another BBCream or compact powder… but I just brought it for its sheer prettiness. 

The full ShiniStar collection itself consists of Clear Pact(available in 2 Lavender & 1 Peach), Clear BB Lotion and 5 tinted lip balms (each color is picked by each member of the band). I only picked the BB lotion and Clear pact, as I don’t fancy tinned lip balms. 

I haven’t tried these products yet…but I can tell you (again) I love the packaging design! The BB lotion/cream has pump mechanism and I find very easy and convenient to use. It gives me sheer coverage.

The compact powder/Clear pact is made of light plastic-but thanks to the finishing touches, the compact feels more cute than cheap. The features generous sized mirror inside and a puff. The powder color is shimmery lavender. 

*Update: I've tried the Clear pact here!and the BB lotion here!

SkinFood – Good Afternoon Peach Green Tea BB cream SPF20 PA+ in #2

I love tea and I love mattifying, oil controlling creams and powders! This one has both! Perfect!

Skinfood is Korean brand I adore for its natural-themed products & packaging. This BB cream is one of their extensive Good Afternoon series: Berry Berry for skin revitalizing, Apple cinnamon for brightening, rose lemon for hydration, peach green tea for mattifying and oil controlling and honey black tea for moisturizing and glow. 

Each type of cream comes in two shades: 1 Light beige and 2 Natural Beige. As you can see in my swatch, even the natural beige is pretty light. I don’t think this will suit darker skin toned ladies. Coverage is medium, the creamy BB blends nicely on my skin. I usually use my bb cream as foundation-after moisturizer and before make up.

It has slight fruity-apricot scent. Very light, it pretty much disappears after application.  My skin does look wonderfully fresh and matte after application- the coverage is medium-light on me. It stays fresh and i only need to blot my T zone after 3- 4 hours, that's slighty less frequent than my usual blotting.

bottomline...
Wonderful addition to my BB cream collection, I do think this purchase is money well spent. it might not be suitable for those with dry skin and surely wont be suitable for those with deeper skin tone.

Maybelline Pure BB Mineral Instant Skin Smoother – BB Mousse SPF 30, PA +++

I usually never notice mousse anything, until my bestie keep on telling me how fabulous Shu Uemura Mousse foundation is. I’m not entirely sold, and not willing to shell out so much money for foundation I rarely use.

So, when I saw similar concept from Maybelline (cheaper too!), I was eager to try. An extension to the Mineral line from Maybelline, this one claims to be as effective as BB cream, but with fun mousse texture! I think this one came in 2 shades. Comes with SPF and PA protection too. Sounds good!

It took me a while to master dispensing technique of this one, mainly because I am not used with mousse products.  The nozzle dispenses unscented fluffy, light, soft mousse – that’s easy to spread and blends nicely with my skin tone. my skin is fairly non problematic  (except for annoyingly oily T zone), so I cant really see the difference in smoothness this product offers. However, it really does give my skin fresh, light yet matte finish. I love how my skin feels and look after fresh application of this one.  Coverage BB Mousse offers is light-medium, doesn’t really cover blemishes, but it does make my skin look more even toned. 

Even though it starts off with matte finish, my skin does get oily as usual. I need to blot after about 2 hours, that’s quite normal for me (same with when I only apply my moisturizer and sunblock).

Bottomline…

This one is fun addition to my collection of foundations. Pleasant to wear, but not a must.

I got mine from Sasa Taiwan. This product is not available in all Asian countries.