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Lifestyle | KBeauty | Living with Multiple Sclerosis | Cancer Survivor | Beauty Blogger | My mind takes me to many places! Come along for the ride.


Twitter: @koreansoul77
Instagram: halfkoreangirl25

Friday, February 20, 2015

Benefit Roller Lash Mascara Review

If you like beauty and Benefit Cosmetics then you’ve probably heard that on Feb 26th Benefit is launching their new mascara the Benefit Roller Lash. Benefit has been a beauty favorite of many and their “They’re Real!” push-up liner and mascara are beauty staples for many. Now, I’m not a diehard Benefit girl. I do love their erase past (which I’ve been using for years) and I enjoy their Big Beautiful Eyes palette. However, I’m not a fan of the They’re Real push-up liner. I know I know (hand up) sacrilege. I say all of this because I want to let everyone know that I’m coming from an unbiased starting point. 


I was lucky enough to get a sample of Roller Lash and I have been using it every day (this is the reason my Laura Geller Beauty GlamLASH Dramatic Volumizing Mascara sample couldn't be used right away). The mascara claims to grab, separate, lift and curl with the formula holding the results for 12 hours. As a person who wears falsies the search for mascara that does all of these things would be amazing (and save me a bunch of eye poking time). 

First impressions it is apparent right away is the brush itself is different. If you look very closely you can see that the bristles on this brush have hook’s that help to pull and curl the lashes. The smell of the product is a light mascara smell (yes I smell everything) nothing overpowering or off. The formula is not thick and feels like a gel. I’m not a fan of goopy mascara because of their tendency to overload my lashes.


The mascara goes on easily for me with a minimal separating required. My lashes have a tendency to get spidery and they do a little with this mascara as well but every one’s lashes are different. It did hold for the 12 hours and I had no problem with any of the pigment traveling under my eye (sometimes it does magically even if it says waterproof). Here are some before and after photos without and with the Roller Lash Mascara (scary eye close-up).
 
Naked eyelashes! 

One coat of Roller Lash

Two coats of Roller Lash

Can you tell which eye has the mascara on? 

I applied the Roller Lash on my right eye and then applied the Laura Geller Beauty GlamLASH Dramatic Volumizing Mascara on the left eye for comparison. I did not use an eyelash curler, primer, or any other mascara (or makeup on my face as you can see). There is no denying that the Roller Lash Mascara did an amazing job at lifting and curling my lash. 


I have to say that I really love the Roller Ball Mascara from Benefit. I was absolutely shocked that it delivered on all of its promises. Benefit has done an amazing job with the wand and the mascara formula and I have already ordered a full-sized product. I 100% recommend this product. Great job Benefit!

Thursday, February 19, 2015

Ipsy February 2015 Unbagging - Spoilers!

This week has been subscription box week! This is my unbagging (what is the right word here? Unbagging, unboxing?) of the February 2015 Ipsy bag. If you don’t know Ipsy is a monthly beauty subscription bag which provides 5 products which range in size from sample to full-sized. This subscription is $10.00 a month and always arrives with its own makeup bag (the samples are inside). 

Now onto All The Things!



When I opened the metallic pink envelope this fell out first. The Luxie Beauty Large Angled Face Brush number 504 (retail $16.00) is 100% Animal Cruelty Free synthetic brush. The brush is also coated with an antibacterial solution for minimal brush cleansing (nice but…I want a clean brush). I have to limit when I make purchases (because as stated before - I like to pay my mortgage) and this week is my week to buy myself things (brushes or other splurges). Not only did my 3b bag come with a product I was going to purchase but so did Ipsy. I was going to buy a large angled face brush for myself and while it was a different brand this one is very nice. 


The bristles are dense and hold the product well. It distributes powder evenly and easily and it works great with my cream contouring products (another upcoming review). The brush is good quality and made fairly well. It’s a light brush so if you enjoy the feel of a heavy brush you won’t like this one. Yes, the bristles are very soft which surprised me. Overall this is a great brush and I’m happy to have it.

Next is the Rob Scheppy for 'Tini Beauty Eyeshadow in pearl fizz. This is a very nice light pink color (the bag has a pink theme – Valentine’s day). The formula is pigmented but it’s a little chalky. Not a lot of fallout but you can feel that it might be a little too dry for those with dry eyelids (if you have dry eyelids moisturize people – I do now, things were getting’ crepey up there). This is a very spring color and I have not worn it (I’m really into the Nars Dolomite duo right now). 





I don’t think I’ll be using the Hey Honey Take It Off! Exfoliating Honey Peel Off Mask – full-sized $35.00. Well, I keep going back and forth on trying out the mask. I’m going to have to check out the ingredient list on CosDNA before I slather it on my face. 


I love CARGO cosmetics and I was excited to see this Cargo Lip Gloss in the shade Anguilla – full-sized $16.00. The color is pink and very pigmented. So pigmented in fact that I wasn’t sure it was a lip gloss when I saw it in the box. I am so very sad to say that it has an odd smell. I can’t put my finger on it but it’s a slightly sour smell. On the positive side the gloss is not sticky goes on very well and lasts. As well, the smell dissipated quickly. I enjoy it I’ll just have to get use to the smell. 


I really do like ModelCO BLUSH Cheek Powder in Cosmopolitan 01 full-sized product retail $22.00. I really like ModelCO products. The blush is a great girly pink color and it’s very pigmented. It’s a creamy blush with not much fallout. I used it today and it didn’t leave my face cakey a problem I have with my dry skin. 




Overall I really liked this Ipsy bag. I am surprised because this was going to be a make it or break it bag for me. Maybe the beauty subscription powers that be heard all of us talking about the quality of the products in the Ipsy bag? What did you think of your Ipsy bag?


Tuesday, February 17, 2015

Unboxing of the 3b Beauty Subscription box for Feb 2015 - Spoilers!

I love Korean Beauty products. Not only do they use more natural and high-end ingredients but they’re Korean. Who could not love something Korean – smile? This is my unboxing of the 3b beauty subscription box (bag really) for February 2015. 3b (beauty, beyond, borders) is a monthly subscription service which provides five Asian beauty products to your front door (gotta spice it up a little here). They are usually deluxe sized samples but they seem to include one full sized product every month. They are $13.00 a month and you can check them out here https://the3bbox.com/ 

Now All The Things! 



First thing out of my lovely purple satchel is this Etude House Collagen Moistfull Essence. For those unfamiliar with Asian beauty will probably say “What is an essence?”. In a nut shell essence helps your skin at the cellular level to turnover old skin cells (I’ll post a full Korean Skin Care breakdown soon). Everyone knows I love my Benton HighContent Snail Bee Essence and I’m not sure I want to try another. However, I hear great things about Etude house. 


Now this I’ve been eyeing to try for a while now. The Banila co. Clean It Zero Cleansing Blam hypoallergenic and goes from a solid balm into an oil on the skin. We all know that oil breaks up makeup the best and I hear that Clean it Zero breaks up makeup like no one’s business and works for sensitive skin. As we all know my skin is a schizophrenic off their meds at times so I am super excited to try this. 


Now we have actual oil! The Laneige Perfect Pore Cleansing Oil uses coconut oil to break up water proof makeup as well as excess oil and sebum on the skin. I know it might seem counterintuitive but oil is a very good cleanser for your skin. Used properly it will not cause blemishes or breakouts. It actually works to sooth and calm the skin from acne and sensitivity. I say used properly because…if you pour the whole bottle on your face you’re probably going to have a problem. 


I’m so glad I got these Skinfood Oil Control Film Sheets because I need them in my life. I’m going on a trip in April and I love having the blotting sheets for those times when my face is a bit shiny. Since my skin is dry if I use powder to try to get rid of shine I can get that cakey/dry look. Not a good look for me. Blotting papers are the key to keeping the shine away without ruining makeup. 


This my friends is worth the price of the bag and then some. The Mizon Snail Repair Eye Cream is a product I was literally going to buy online this week. This eye cream contains 80% snail mucin is all-natural, cruelty-free, and is anti-microbial with included anti-oxidants, proteins, and glycolic acid. I am almost out of eye cream so this is perfect timing. 3b must be reading my mind.


I really love this subscription service. It provides people with Asian beauty products which they wouldn’t be exposed to normally and is a great value. I love trying new things and while I enjoy other subscription boxes this one is totally different in a really good way. If you’re looking for something different then the norm go I highly recommend the 3b beauty box.

Monday, February 16, 2015

February 2015 Birchbox Unboxing - Spoilers!

Hi everyone! Happy Presidents Day! In honor of this lovely Presidents day I am posting my unboxing of the February 2015 Birchbox (and the crowd goes wild). For those who do not know Birchbox is a monthly beauty subscription box. For $10.00 a month you receive five sample to deluxe sized samples of various beauty products. When you first subscribe you will fill out a profile that will help them pick your samples – so every box is not exactly the same. If you want to check them out you can find them here www.birchbox.com. .

Real quick before we get into the unboxing I would like to discuss affiliate links. All of the subscription beauty services have what are called affiliate links. If you click on that link and subscribe the person who linked you will receive either a commission, points (which they can use for products), or a bonus of some sort. I do have affiliate links however I do not post them. If you click on a link in one of my blog posts I do not receive any sort of bonus. Why? I feel like if I’m going to review something for you I want to do it because I enjoy reviewing the boxes – not for monetary value. If and when I do post affiliate links I will let you know 100% that they are. I don’t ever plan on posting them in blogs but when my YouTube channel goes live I will have them in the info section. I just wanted to clear up any confusion – smile. 

Now - All The Things! 





Since this is Valentine’s Day month (does that even make sense?) I was expecting a cute pink theme to the box. I have to say I’m not a girly girly who likes all pink and fairy farts on my stuff. So I was really apprehensive about what would be in my box. I didn’t have to worry though. A unicorn didn’t fart into my box and I did not get glitter bombed! Yay! 

Also, I like that the boxes are all designed differently. Remember if you receive Birchbox they want you to save them for the whole year for something at the end of the year. Ooo the anticipation - ha.

The first product I pulled out was the Laura Gellar Beauty GlamLASH Dramatic Volumizing Mascara deluxe sized sample – Full-sized price $24.00. I have not used this product yet because I am currently testing out different mascara (spoiler it’s the new Benefit Mascara) which I will be reviewing soon on my blog. I’ll keep this this one until that experiment is done. First impressions though – the formula does not have a strong scent, does not seem very thick or gel like, and the brush is fairly standard. 


Next we have the Marcelle Gentle Make-Up Remover for Sensitive Eyes deluxe sized sample – Full-size $15.00. I did use this product and I really like it. It took off my eye make-up easily with no rubbing or pulling. I use waterproof/don’t move/sharpie type eye make-up because if I don’t I’ll look like a raccoon in 30 minutes. My skin is sensitive and my eyes can be but this product caused no irritation and didn’t have any type of smell. I’m happy to have this because I’m going on a trip soon so this will be perfect. 


This is a Birchbox exclusive - The PARLOR by Jeff Chastain Moisturizing Sea Salt Spray deluxe sized sample – Full-sized $24.00. This is a nondrying spray which gives you soft beachy waves. I haven’t used this product yet because I don’t want beachy waves in my hair right now. When I do use it (sometime in the summer) I’ll do a full review on the product. 


I have to say I don’t like perfume samples. I’m so picky when it comes to perfume and I feel like I can get perfume samples for free at the store. This sample is Harvey Prince Ageless – full-size price $55.00. It’s a citrus undertone mixed with sweet candy. It’s not a bad scent but it reminds me of something a tween would wear. Nothing I would wear personally but it’s not overpowering. Good scent if you have a teen in your home (and you want to spend $55.00 on that teen). 



The last product is theBalm cosmetics Read My Lips Lip Gloss – BAM! in Rose Pink deluxe size – Full-sized price $24.00. This product is said to be fortified with ginseng. The gloss is nice and when I put it on it is initially sticky but very quickly the stickiness goes away. It smells like the Sugar free Ice Breakers Sour Watermelon candy. Yes, the smell is that specific to me. The wear isn’t super long (3 hours) but that’s a good run for a lip gloss. I really like this product. I’ve wanted to try more theBalm products and if this is an example of theBlam’s quality - I’m impressed.



Birchbox is one of my favorite subscription boxes. 100% worth the $10.00 a month in my opinion. If I were to compare Birchbox to Ipsy, which is another subscription box at the same price of $10.00 a month, I would say that Birchbox wins hands down. I'm giving Ipsy a few more months to see if they up their game. What do you guys think about Ipsy versus Birchbox? 

Saturday, February 14, 2015

First Impressions of the Rouge Coco Ultra Hydrating Lip Colour

So today for the first time in four years I’m single (not a big deal actually) and I thought “What would be fun for me to do?”. I decided to pick-up my Chanel Rouge Coco Ultra Hydrating Lip Colour. Chanel has reformulated the product and since I love lovely friends, I was able to get first dibs on some colors. Here is the information for the Rouge Coco published on the Chanel website. 


ROUGE COCO dresses the lips in an easy and self-evident daily beauty step. 
Thanks to its soft, creamy texture and its luxurious, timeless packaging, it is the confidante of each moment of a woman’s life, finding its natural place in the handbags of women today. 
The new ROUGE COCO formula combines hydration and comfort. Created by CHANEL, the Hydratender complex delivers 8-hour hydration with a single application. The choice of pigments with an utmost quality optimises the formula’s comfort. 

ROUGE COCO offers a satiny and luminous makeup result. Faithful to its black and gold codes, ROUGE COCO comes in a new metal case, with a contemporary and timeless design. The elegant and luminous shades of the range are easy to wear and use in your own, individual way, according to your mood. From legendary sites to favorite pieces of jewelry, from passions to symbols, their names recount the private background of Coco Chanel. 
A classic has never expressed itself this freely. 

“ROUGE COCO allows all women to discover, or rediscover, the pleasure of lipstick.” Peter Philips

The collection features 29 new shades in 6 color palettes (Nudes, Oranges, Pinks, Rosewoods, Reds and Plums), each named after the friends, loves and muses of Mademoiselle Chanel.

Nudes
  • 400 Louise
  • 402 Adrienne
  • 404 Julia
  • 406 Antoinette
  • 408 Jeanne
Oranges
  • 410 Catherine
  • 412 Téhéran
  • 414 Sari Doré
  • 416 Coco
  • 418 Misia
Pinks
  • 420 Vera
  • 422 Olga
  • 424 Edith
  • 436 Roussy
  • 428 Légende
  • 430 Marie
Rosewoods
  • 432 Cécile
  • 434 Mademoiselle
  • 436 Maggy
  • 438 Suzanne
Reds
  • 440 Arthur
  • 442 Dimitri
  • 444 Gabrielle
  • 446 Etienne
Plums
  • 448 Elise
  • 450 Ina
  • 452 Emilienne
  • 454 Jean
  • 456 Erik

I got two colors (because I buy these myself, they’re $36.00 each, and I like to pay my mortgage) 440 Arthur and 408 Jeanne. The 408 was chosen for me by the lovely counter manager at Chanel who I love (she just looks like Chanel if that makes sense) who I won’t name because…I didn’t ask her if I could – laugh. She’s absolutely spot on with colors and recommendations. It also doesn’t hurt that Jeanne is my name just spelled different (Genie). 




I’ve swatched both colors for you and I also am showing them on lips. Since I wore Jeanne and I didn’t’ want any change to the final color of Arthur, I had my friend (who also bought Chanel) wear her Arthur. Her skin tone is very pale and mine is light for reference. 


Jeanne
Arthur on top Jeanne on Bottom

I wore the Jeanne for 5 hours and I have to say I’m very impressed. First, the product is creamy, goes on very smooth, and is highly pigmented. The lip color also has the trademark Chanel scent, which I was worried about, but the smell went away immediately after application. I really dislike when the smell of the lipstick lingers such as Dior. 

I feel that the formula is hydrating. My lips right now (hours later) are still hydrated from the product. I am confident that the claims that the product provides 8 hours of hydration are not overinflated. As you can see from the photos the color did not bleed, neither my friend nor I used a lip liner. This impressed me as well since the colors are very pigmented and vibrant. What impressed me even more was that the color lasted until I ate. I was also drinking out of a straw and while there was some color transfer there was not as much as I thought with such a rich formula. 

The swatch of Jeanne looks very brown. I can tell you it’s not as dark as it seems on the lip. Jeanne is a great nude color and I was scared I’d look like some emo Goth girl. I was very surprised that I did not. Please excuse my face I have no makeup on - laugh.


Overall I like this new formula and I think it’s well worth the price. The range of colors should fit into every girl’s life and who doesn’t need hydration? I’ll be using my colors in the next few weeks and I will give you an update on how I feel about them then. 

Thursday, February 12, 2015

Beauty Video Rant

/ranton

I can’t keep quiet any longer. I’ve been watching YouTube beauty videos a lot recently because as I get ready to put my own videos up, I wanted some good ideas/see what I like and don’t like. So, this is something I need to say – cut the shit out. 
  • I can tell that your video is sponsored. Hey that’s great but seriously don’t try to pretend it’s not. Who the hell stops in the middle of filming to say “My lips are dry. I am going to use my Chapstick. I love Chapstick and this new formula”. Are you serious right now? “I love to use Huggies wipes”. Really? Not just random makeup wipes? You use Huggies baby poop cleaning wipes for a makeup remover while you’re swatching some colourpop eye shadows (FYI Colourpop eye shadows are amazing - no lie)? 
  • If I see 10 videos about x product. I know one of two things happened. You got that shit for free or it’s sponsored. Don’t tell me you all of a sudden decided your teeth needed whitening. Unless… you and all your YouTube friends had a meeting – I mean that could happen... right? 
  • Are you seriously complaining that a subscription service is no longer sending you their box for free? Are you shitting me? I pay for my Boxycharm and since they’re in Florida I pay sales tax. Oh the horror! Be happy that they sent it to you in the first place and if you like it how about, now stay with me here, you subscribe? I know that might be a crazy idea but it is a business. 
  • I understand you’re a Christian. I’m a Christian too but if you can’t say NARS Orgasm blush then stop making videos. It’s a word. Jesus is not going to smite for saying Orgasm. If the word Orgasm is blowing your mind then you might need to take a shower after reading this blog. 
  • I’m watching your video because I want to see makeup. Yes you do need to fill up a little of the video with being yourself and chatting but I seriously don’t need to hear about your trip to the OB/GYN before you review the new Chanel Spring Collection. 
  • “This pallet is great. The colors are so pigmented and stay on for hours. I haven’t been able to use it yet but…” What? What did you just say? How do you know anything about this product if you haven’t personally tried it? I just can’t..
  • Don’t be mean to other beauty YouTuber’s. There is enough room for everyone. You look bad with ugly on.
  • Don’t do weightloss videos unless you’ve had a weight problem. I’m sorry but if you’ve weighed 120 lbs your whole life you have no idea how much of a struggle losing weight is.
  • Are you crying because you broke your pallet? (slow blink) I…
  • Please give me your real opinion. It doesn’t help me if you hate it but won’t say you hate it because you don’t want to be negative. Just don’t include those products in the video. It makes things easier that way. 
/rantoff

Sunday, February 1, 2015

Jardin de Chanel Blush Camélia Rosé First Impressions and Review (and the Horror)

I splurged on myself and purchased the Chanel Jardin de Chanel Blush Camélia Rosé. This was a huge purchase for me because it was $55.00 (eek) and my first Chanel purchase (everything else has been a gift). I have to say that I love the flowers pressed into the pan. Would it make me buy the blush if it were the only pro? No. 






I love this color it is a slightly flushed tone of pink. Very light and warm and while it looks shimmery in the pan the blush does not have a shimmer and sits with a satin finish on the cheeks. If you’re thinking of splurging on something from Chanel’s spring line and you have my skin tone - I really recommend this. 

I did this very natural look with the Jardin de Chanel Blush Camélia Rosé on my cheeks (please ignore my baby hairs, they're growing back after chemo and are very unruly - smile)



Now here comes the bad part (for me).


See where that arrow is pointing? That was the beginning of my face reacting to the blush (sigh). See that lovely red spot on my face? This splotchy spot was the beginning of a very bad reaction to the Jardin de Chanel Blush Camélia Rosé. I didn’t notice the reaction when I took this photo (because I wasn’t looking for it and no glasses). I noticed it a bit later when I was trying to make my liquid eyeliner work. I didn’t see red splotchyness, what I noticed were tiny bumps that looked like pimples…(my look of surprise). 


I’m sad to say that I had to return the blush because while I love it I enjoy not having bad reactions on my face even more. I’m out looking for a dupe as we speak and if I find one I’ll let you know.

For the rest of my look I used:

Foundation: YSL Fusion Ink in Ivory
Brows: Serenity & Scott Brow Gel in Silver Fawn
Contour: Kat Von D Shade and Light (will have a full review soon)
Highlight: Benefit Watts Up
Lips: Dior Addict 551
Lip Liner: Lancome Le Lipstique Rougelle
Eye Primer: Urban Decay Primer Potion Sin
Eye Shadow Pallet: Costal Scents Revealed 2
Eye Liner: Liquid Japanese brand that I’ve lost (laugh)
Eye liner: Marcn Jacobs Luna
Face Primer: Clinique Super Primer Colour Corrects Redness
Concealer: ITCosmetics Bye Bye Undereye Neutral Medium