"The cat is beauty and the beast, a baffling blend, a wicked feast.”
Hydraluron ($25 for 1 fl. oz.) by indeed Laboratories gained something of a cult following after skincare guru Caroline Hirons raved about its hydrating and plumping powers. Although it was available in the UK, Hydraluron didn’t hit the States until last year. When I saw it available on drugstore.com, I snapped it up immediately.
Continue reading “Hydraluron . . . and Off: Hydraluron Review”
I love cushion compacts and I love customized things, so a DIY cushion compact is just up my alley. A DIY cushion is also a great solution for the dearth of cushion compacts for deeper skin tones and the general dearth of cushion versions of color makeup (highlighter, blush, bronzer).
A’Pieu and Missha actually have empty cushion compacts made for this purpose. I’ve seen some other DIY tutorials involving kitchen sponges, stamp/finger-wetting sponges, and regular makeup sponges. But the Missha Magic Cushion is so cheap ($10-13) that I figured I may as well just buy one that’s intended specifically for this purpose.
Continue reading “Magic: The Gathering (of Makeup): DIY Missha Magic Cushion Review + Tutorial”
Before whizzing by it on Valley Blvd. one night, I had never heard of Miibox. All I noticed was a store with colorfully lit shelves in neat, spacious rows. Hmm, I thought. Potential new Asian beauty store? A quick Google search showed that Miibox is a retailer of Asian beauty products and snacks. The brick-and-mortar storefront officially opened on January 31st and offers a selection of the products sold on the website. 
Miibox 425 W. Valley Boulevard San Gabriel, CA 91776
Continue reading “All of Mii: Miibox in San Gabriel – Store Review”
I’m gonna milk this mask for all the puns it’s worth. You’d be udderly groaning by the time you’re done skimming through this article. Pa dum tsssh.
Anyway this is one of my favorite sheet masks from the “My Scheming” brand. My Scheming what??? I really don’t know. They really didn’t think through using an adjective as a noun I guess. This mask is from the same manufacturer as My Beauty Diary so it’s essentially the same concept: sheet masks soaked in various solutions to treat your various beauty needs:
Cue Sam Sparro, I love that freaking song! Anyway I’ve had my eyes (pun intended) on these hydrogel patches since seeing them in all the Asian cosmetics stores. They’re supposed to be popular and awesome right?
Continue reading “Black and Gold – Petitfée Black Pearl and Gold Hydrogel Eye Patch”
East coast snowboarding, besides leaving a dent in my ass, has been causing my otherwise-resilient hair to take some damage. So I dipped in to my normally useless Glossybox for this:
Continue reading “How Pro Can You Go? – Proganix Reparative Oil”
The Mamonde Stamping Edge Lip Tint seemed so promising. A dual-ended pen, it has a pointed cushion/sponge on one end and a balmy crayon on the other. The shade 06 Peach Bloom caught my eye. The cushion side was a smooth, matte, pigmented bright peach that applied easily with slight pressure. The balm end swiveled up to reveal a glossy, sheer peach balm. In short: I swatched, I swooned, I bought. 
Continue reading “Peach DOOM: Mamonde Stamping Edge Lip Tint in 06 Peach Bloom Review + Swatches”
What’s that you say? You want MOAR reviews of Laneige Water Drop Tints? Well I’m happy to oblige with a review of my seventh Water Drop Tint. I saw this at Aritaum in San Gabriel, Calif., and initially resisted. But it beckoned—nay, compelled–me to return. And so I introduce . . . Hot Pink! ($22 at Aritaum.)
Isn’t she puuurrrrty?
Continue reading “Hot or Not? Laneige Water Drop Tint in Hot Pink Review + Swatches”
Over the holidays, we spent what felt like hours (in a good way) at Takashima in San Gabriel and in Arcadia. The selection differs slightly between the two, so we had to go to both. ::looks away:: Ahem, moving on . . .
We loooove Takashima as hands-down the best place for Japanese beauty products–better than any Japanese supermarket and any other Japanese beauty store. I haven’t seen any place on the East Coast with the breadth and depth of the offerings at Takashima. (But please let me know if I’m wrong!) Check out Takashima’s e-storefront here and brick-and-mortar locations here (currently in Calif. only).
Continue reading “Haullaback Girls: Takashima and PA++++ Sunscreen Shopping”
Ahh, it’s nice to have friends who travel. They gain eye-opening experiences, life lessons, multicultural perspectives, blah blah…but most importantly, they can bring you back makeup goodies. My dear friend had the briefest layover in Seoul but managed to bring back the latest cushion compact by HERA: the Ultra Moisture Cushion in shade 21 Cool Vanilla.
The gorgeous pale purple and holographic packaging is almost reason enough to buy it. To top it off, the formula is actually really wonderful. I expected the usual satiny-dewy finish, but lo and behold, the Ultra Moisture is a soft, polished matte finish. ::mind blown::
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