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Land of the Rising Sunscreen: Japanese PA++++ Sunscreen Reviews

When the AB See link party (for bloggers and readers alike) took on the topic of sun protection, that was the push for me to finally–finally, midway through the summer–post a roundup of (almost all) the Japanese sunscreens that I’ve tried in the last two years.  All of them are SPF 50+ PA++++, which is apparently hard to formulate well because I’ve had way more misses than hits!

These are the sunscreens reviewed in this post, in order of preference:

  1. Solanoveil Watery Essence
  2. Solanoveil Watery Gel
  3. Nivea Protect Plus Skin UV Cream
  4. Canmake Mermaid Skin Gel UV
  5. Sun Bears Strong Super Plus
  6. Shiseido Senka Mineral Water UV Essence
  7. Sunkiller Perfect Strong Moisture
  8. Hada Labo Perfect UV Gel in Pink Beige
  9. Sunplay Super Block
  10. 50 Megumi Morning UV Protection Cream Review
  11. Shigaisen Yohou UV Cream
  12. Privacy UV Mist
  13. Supergoop! Defense Refresh Setting Mist (bonus non-Japanese sunscreen)

Continue reading “Land of the Rising Sunscreen: Japanese PA++++ Sunscreen Reviews”

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Good Day Funshine: Solanoveil Watery Essence vs. Watery Gel Review & Comparison

Biore, Shiseido, Nivea, Sun Bears–those are some of the frequently mentioned brands when the topic of Japanese sunscreens come up in Asian beauty circles.

Solanoveil was new to me when I spotted it on Ratzilla Cosme, as a Best Pick no less!  So I took a chance and ordered a bottle–sparking a loyalty to the brand that’s still going strong as multiple repurchases can confirm.

01 Solanoveil Watery Essence Watery Gel ReviewIn the last year, I’ve tried both Solanoveil Watery Essence and Solanoveil Watery Gel (Ratzilla’s Best Pick), so this post reviews and compares the two.  For reference, my skin is normal in the summer, dry and flaky in the winter, and I always wear foundation on top (mineral powder or cushion compact).

READ MOAR: I tried 12 Japanese sunscreens so you didn’t have to.

Continue reading “Good Day Funshine: Solanoveil Watery Essence vs. Watery Gel Review & Comparison”

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Squa-d Goals: Squa Powder Wash from HABA Pure Roots

Tis the season of travelling, and TRYING to travel light and pass TSA checks and all that b.s. Thus I am enthusiastic about any beauty products that come in powder form. That means you can carry way over the pesky 3 fl oz rule, be adequately ensured that you have enough in the case of an apocalypse, and avoid spills.

Behold the  Squa Powder Wash from HABA Pure Roots

Continue reading “Squa-d Goals: Squa Powder Wash from HABA Pure Roots”

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Scratch that Ichimi Cosme – Asian Beauty Store Review

September 2016 UPDATE: Ichimi Cosme changed its name to Ume Cosme.  Instagram and Yelp links have been updated.

Today’s post is a closer look–in pictures–at Japanese and Korean beauty store Ichimi Cosme in New York’s East Village.  That link will take you to Renee’s first look at the store, and Ichimi Cosme is also on Instagram and Yelp.

01 Ichimi Cosme ShoppingThat’s Renee shopping because I was in the midst of my no-buy when we went ::quietly sobs::

Ichimi is located at:

318 E. 9th St
New York, NY 10003
(between 1st and 2nd Ave.)

What I love about Ichimi Cosme is that it offers a ton of Japanese beauty brands that weren’t available before in NY (at least not as far as we two shopaholics knew).  Los Angeles (including the Asian suburb of San Gabriel Valley) has long had tons of Japanese offerings.  (I’ve posted shopping guides on LA shopping and specifically Takashima in the SGV before.) Continue reading “Scratch that Ichimi Cosme – Asian Beauty Store Review”

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Heaven on Earthscience: Ceramide Care Shampoos from Earth Science Naturals

The health food store called Westerly on 8th Avenue takes your whole paycheck with just one aisle of its organic, hand grown, hand raised, stroked, massaged and coddled products, and that’s just the lettuce. However, I go during lunch time anyway becase there’s actually NOTHING good to eat sometimes in Hell’s Kitchen, New York. True story.

On a whim, I once picked up Earth Science Naturals skin tonic spray. The good people of Earth Science Naturals saw this and noticed. Kristen and the Earthscience Naturals Team sent us a ginormous box of their new Ceramide Care shampoos and conditioners to try. I received a massive box of 8 full sized shampoos and conditioners to the questioning looks of my boss.

Behold one of the Ceramide Care Shampoo & Conditioner sets:

 

Continue reading “Heaven on Earthscience: Ceramide Care Shampoos from Earth Science Naturals”

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AB See: Join the Asian Beauty Link Party

Catladies and gentlemen, announcing…

AB See!

an Asian beauty link party

AB See Link Party HostsAll are welcome–regardless of whether you blog or just enjoy reading blogs!  Click on the AB See logo above to go to Maple Tree Blog‘s post kicking off our inaugural party and giving the exact details on how to participate.

I figured I’d make this a “Link Parties for Dummies” post because I didn’t know what a link party was until recently!

What’s a link party?  

Basically, bloggers submit links to their posts fitting the theme of the week (always AB-related for AB See), and readers check out the posts and vote for their favorites.  This link party’s an opportunity for AB fans to see new blogs (AB See, get it?) and for AB bloggers to introduce themselves to new readers (and meet other bloggers, too!). Continue reading “AB See: Join the Asian Beauty Link Party”

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Happy Mudder’s Day: My Beauty Diary 2-Step Balancing & Purifying Cleansing Pack Review

01 My Beauty Diary 2-Step Balancing & Purifying Cleansing Pack ReviewI’m new to this 2-step masking business.  So far, I’ve only tried an acid-soaked jumbo Q-tip+sheet mask (link to Fiddy Snails’ review) and a serum+sheet mask (link to Renee’s review).  The lazy me can barely bother to do a weekly sheet mask and would rather crawl under a bacon blanket than do an extra step.

But the lazy me also likes that these are basically pre-configured routines.  Thank you, Sheet Mask Conglomerate, for forcing reminding me that I should really follow an acid treatment or a drying mud mask with a comforting sheet mask instead of pulling a Gudetama.

After noticing some small irritation bumps developing on my forehead and cheeks, I pulled out the My Beauty Diary 2-Step Balancing & Purifying Cleansing Pack, comprised of a mung bean (!) mud mask and a glacier water sheet mask.  (A box of 4 is $13.49 on Amazon and $15.50 on Beauteque.)

Continue reading “Happy Mudder’s Day: My Beauty Diary 2-Step Balancing & Purifying Cleansing Pack Review”

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Fur-mented: Peora Facial Cream Review

When Korean skincare brand Peora asked us to try its Facial Cream, I was intrigued because of all the ferments. Peora says that its fermentation process–which enables microorganisms to survive longer and increase vitality–extracts microorganisms from many traditional fermented foods (not just kimchi but also yogurt, sauerkraut, natto, and foods I didn’t even recognize) to create complex microorganisms.

In the cream, that’s supposed to translate to higher potency and quicker absorption, eliminating cakey makeup.

01 Peora Facial Cream Review*Cats and Apeach not included.

The cream (provided by Peora for review) is $35 for 1.75 fl. oz., vegan, and cruelty-free .

>>Use code BEAUTYANDTHECAT to save 20% off the Peora site through June 13, 2016! (We don’t get anything from that, in case you’re wondering.)<<

Continue reading “Fur-mented: Peora Facial Cream Review”

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Brays to God – Elizavecca Milky Piggy Silky Creamy Donkey Steam Cream Mask Pack

This past week has been one of the least fun weeks of my life for many reasons, one of which was being bedridden with a severe case of the flu. Now I know why/how people actually can die from the flu, no joke.

In the haze of a 102-degree fever, I dreamt that I was in a middle of a gnarly Battle-Royale type situation, slashing people and being slashed. When I came to, I glanced at the two things that always make things better: Miss Roxy and my collection of skin care shit.

This was purrrrchased on a whim from oo35mm because it seemed to have serious brayin’ power. Look at the name:

Elizavecca Milky Piggy Silky Creamy Donkey Steam Cream Mask Pack

Continue reading “Brays to God – Elizavecca Milky Piggy Silky Creamy Donkey Steam Cream Mask Pack”