THEFACESHOP Clean Face Clear Away Spot (Cystic Acne Remedy): Review

You would think nothing's worse than pimples. Four years ago, I used to think the same. Up until I faced one of the most disgusting and most painful skin problems of all-- cystic acne! Yes, it is similar to pimples, clogged pores and inflammed with redness that screams "Look at me!". But while pimples scream at 80 decibels, cystic acne shouts at 100 decibels! It obviously has deeper roots and it definitely is (always) much more painful. As if all that isn't enough to drive you insane, it is also harder to treat. Good thing I came across THEFACESHOP Clear Away Spot!

 Top view. Just because I feel more creative, taking one. Hehe.

 When the instructions say, "DO NOT SHAKE!" in upper case letters, you know they're seriously asking you not to.

 Active ingredient: Tea Tree Extracts

 It's a cute little bottle of miracle!

Before I continue, I would just like to clarify one thing. I'm no skin expert. Yes, I have a background around health but my skills are mostly critical care nursing and I don't have enough knowledge about dermatology for me to be considered an expert. I am, however, very experienced with this topic as I have been struggling with the problem (on and off) for almost four years now.

The main problem, in my opinion, is the nature of cystic acne. It is deeper within the skin that is why topical creams don't reach them (I think). I used to think that the only solution to this is pimple injections from time to time whenever I get my monthly facial. I get mine from Skin 101 SM Muntinlupa. They do the job pretty well as acne will significantly decrease in size in a matter of hours. The problem, however, is maintenance. Honestly, I don't have the time and money to go get a facial at a two week interval so it really is hard to deal with cystic acne, especially when it forms just days after the facial. But now, I know better. And because I want you to be happy like I am, I would love to share a solution to this problem.

I first got a bottle of this product through Kkochipida for only PHP 300+ when it was on sale early last year. I didn't expect much as I've always had sensitive skin and I really didn't know much about the product. Nevertheless, I still purchased the item out of curiosity. I'm glad I did!

You don't mix it because you aim to get the powder below the solution.

THEFACESHOP Clear Away Spot from their Clean Face line is in the form of pink powder. I'm pretty sure you've seen a product similar to this. One famous product would have to be the Mario Badescu's Drying Lotion but Etude House and Nature Republic also carry a similar product. I've never tried the other ones, though. This is because I'm super satisfied with the one I already have.

As the name suggests, it is a spot treatment. If you keep the bottle still (Don't shake it! I'm not even kidding.), the pink powder will settle at the bottom of the bottle. You then dip a q-tip and get an ample amount of product to your liking. You then apply it on your spots. You can apply it over your cystic acne or on normal zits. The liquid evaporates and the powder sticks to the spot where you placed it. Some say this product dehydrates that spot, reducing inflammation within the area. I'm not entirely sure about this fact but one thing's for sure-- it really does shrink zits fast!

I usually use this at night as I don't really want pink dots all over my face during the day. I sleep on it and magically, all my zits appear smaller when I wake up! It doesn't matter if the zit is so big, that it can already be considered as my secondary chin. Once I apply this product, I am confident that I will see improvements the next day.

With small pimples, it dries up fast. With cystic acne, I notice that it brings the acne out on the surface then dries it out in a few days, if you know what I mean. It also helps in lessening the pain from the inflammation.

This is my holy grail spot treatment and I've never seen any other product work better than this. I am currently on my second bottle, which I purchased from THEFACESHOP boutique in Festival Mall Alabang. I will definitely buy another one once this runs out. So if you have cystic acne problems like me, then I suggest you try this one out. The price is reasonable at PHP595 at THEFACESHOP Philippines boutiques. If you don't have one near you, you can definitely order from Ms. Charm of Kkochipida!

Nature Republic Botanical Lip and Cheek (Red Tangerine #04): Review

Summer ain't over until you say it is... Well, at least that's the case here in the Philippines. I'm not sure if I mentioned this before but I have this firm perception that it is always summer here in the Philippines with occasional bouts of rainfall coupled with a little bit of storms here and there, especially during the months of June- September. Unlike other countries that are blessed with exciting four different seasons of winter, spring, summer and fall, Philippines is so different as it is a tropical one. So while other countries in the west are preparing for summer, here in the Philippines, we bid goodbye to the hottest months of our year. Recently, every now and then, we would experience rainfall, an event that was a bit elusive for the past three months. But despite the few bouts of rainfall, it is still pretty hot and humid here for the most part of the day. So before summer give its final bow, I would love to share this specific product from Nature Republic that has become a staple in my makeup kit.

 Shade 04, Red Tangerine

 Nature Republic is nature friendly. :)

This particular product is called the Nature Republic Botanical Lip and Cheek in Red Tangerine. I got this from my most trusted Korean cosmetics online store, Kkochipida. I'm pretty sure you've heard of this shop at least once if you've been following my blog. But just in case, here's some of my previous posts of products I got from her (Charm). I highly recommend buying from her.

 Obligatory swatch is once again not giving justice to the actual product. This was taken with my old camera, for those who are wondering.

Anyway, since orange is a color that I usually associate with summer, I put it to good use for the past three months. In fact, I even made a makeup tutorial using it! And although it is only advertised as a lip and cheek product, I used it as an all over color cream. It's so versatile!

Clicking on the photo above will lead you to the makeup tutorial video wherein I made use of this product. It may be able to give you a better idea of how it functions if you see it in action. Oh, and don't forget to subscribe if you do watch it! ;)

What I liked the best about this particular product is the shade itself. It's the right shade of orange that doesn't make me look weird. The only down side is that because it is a cream product, I always have to set it with powder. Otherwise, it would not last more than an hour. If I do set it, however, it can stay for a good 3-4 hours, which is pretty standard for my oily skin.

To sum this up, although orange is more of a summer color, I don't see any reason why it cannot be used in other seasons as well so I highly recommend that you get one.

Oh, and a special shout out to the best mom in the world-- MY MOM! It's her birthday today! Have fun today! God bless! I love you! <3

Etude House Color Pop Shine Tint in Vita Pop: Review

It's the season to be bright and bold! At least that's how I believe this season is to be. I live in the Philippines and we're in the middle of summer. Temperature is so high, I can't even leave an air conditioned room in the middle of the day. Let's take today for example. Today is April 12 (one day before this post gets published) and the temperature ranges from 25-33 C, at least that's what my trusty iPad Mini says. It gets unbelievably hot around 2-3PM and even after that, the air just seems to sizzle with heat every single time I get out of the room. Make sure to hydrate yourself well, drink a lot of water and as much as possible, don't expose yourself from too much heat. You don't want to experience heat stroke, right? In some countries, however, it is still partially cold as they just transitioned to the spring season. Oh, how I envy you. I envy those especially who has cherry blossoms to look at. But may it be spring or summer, bright lip colors would still suit the season! I particularly like pink and orange shades for this season. I'm not sure if you've seen my Top 5 Summer/Spring Lip Colors 2014 but this particular product I'm about to talk about is included in that list and it's the only non-local product I included in the lot. It is non other than the Etude House Color Pop Shine Tint in Vita Pop!  

I've had this for quite a while, again from my trusty, favorite online shop called Kkochipida. It was not yet available in Etude House stores back then and this was the first local online store that offered the product for a reasonable price. No, this is not sponsored. I bought this with my own money last year. I've been using this since late August (Yes, I did not use it right away.) but I only found time to write down my thoughts today. (Talk about major back log there!)

If I'm not mistaken, Color Pop Shine Tint collection from Etude House came out last year as part of their summer collection. So when they released this, summer was actually already over (or closely getting over) here in the Philippines. Good thing we live in a tropical country so I managed to still rock this even after summer.

I got it in the shade no. 3 (Vita Pop). I think this one looks closest to the tangerine shade I've always coveted ever since Dara became an Etude House endorser. I know it's f(x)'s Krystal and Sulli who endorses the brand nowadays but I just can't forget who actually convinced me of trying out orange shades as part of my makeup routine. If you're not familiar with Dara's Miss Tangerine days, you can check her CF here.

I'm not sure why I took so many shots of the applicator but it's nothing really fancy or extraordinary. Truth be told, I have small issues on the length of the applicator since it is too short for my taste but it's nothing too much that I would actually complain about. It gets the job done anyway.

Here is a swatch and just as I've said, it is as tangerine as I hoped it would look like. I especially like to do an ombre look using this, along with my Ever Bilena lipstick in Retro. Otherwise, using it on its own is okay too.

Like any other tints, it stains the lips for a longer lasting staying power. The difference, however, is the finish, which as one would assume from its name, is glossy/ shiny. I don't think my lips dry up as much as other tints do with this particular product probably because of the finish. On the other hand, the downside is that it doesn't stay as long as the other tints I've tried. It doesn't bother me, though. Because I only really just bought this because I wanted its shade. Originally, I thought this would only look like a colored lip gloss on my lips that would just last for an hour or so. But as stated above, it provides good color pay off, finishes with a gloss and has a comparable (but sadly not up to par) staying power. Needless to say, it performed better than my expectations that is why I am very impressed with this product. I highly recommend this especially during this summer/ spring season. If you want a video swatch, be sure to check out my Top 5 Summer/ Spring Lip Colors 2014 over here where I swatched all my favorite lip colors for this season, including this.

Three weeks ago, I went to Etude House Glorietta and I saw that this particular product was still in stock so I'm pretty sure it is still available in Etude House boutiques out there. But if you want, you can just ask Etude House Philippines through their facebook page to check if it is in fact, still in stores. It is priced at PHP478. If no Etude House branch is near you and you feel like losing hope, don't fret. Kkochipida is the answer to your prayers!

THEFACESHOP 더페이스샵 Face It Aura CC Cream: Review

Hi everyone! I'm back with a long overdue post. I had this item up in my youtube account more than a month ago. The clips were filmed back in December and the video was edited and uploaded mid-February. I don't know why I kept on procastinating this written item review. It was one of my 'most precious' beauty purchases last year (2013) and I was really excited to use it. I am still using this very product to date but I don't know why it took me so long to write my review down.

Anyway, I won't be dwelling much onto that since I am, in fact, ready to share my thoughts on this product. To be honest, I have been more active in blogging. I write down a review every other day which means I write about 3-4 posts a week. But even though I write as much as that, I still have a lot of back logs. Many photos of different items are still stored in my hard drive and it's driving me nuts! Anyway, I just really hope I get to keep this up. Oh, and I'm also restarting my Asian drama/music blog called Yoboseyo-Asia. You might wanna check it out if you're into Asian (Korean, Japanese, Thai) dramas, movies and music.

So there goes my off-topic paragraph. I'm sorry I had to mention those. Anyway, I am here to review my THEFACESHOP 더페이스샵 Face It Aura CC Cream in #2 Natural Beige. It has SPF 30 and PA ++. I got this from an online store called Kkochipida (http://shop.kkochipida.com/) with Ms. Charm. I got it for cheap at PHP795, compared to the commercial local price of PHP 1,595. If you're in a tight budget and you're into Korean cosmetics, I highly recommend that you get your stuff from Kkochipida. The link directs you to their site. Just to let you know, though, I purchased this particular product with my own money. I was not sponsored and all the things that I will be writing down are all my honest opinions derived from my experience of using the product.

Although I did get the product in mid-August, I only got to start using the item in December, shortly before my visit to Japan. It was winter then and I wanted to get an item that I can use to keep the moisture locked in my skin even under the cold winter weather. It was a battle in between my two other BB Creams and this. But since CC Creams are known to have more skin care benefits than BB Cream, I opted to bring this along with me.

Below would be my thoughts on the product in different aspects.

PACKAGING:

This could actually be considered a skill. Within a few minutes after opening the product, I immediately messed the sponge with a smudge of the actual product. Product photo op fail! Sorry!

One of the most interesting things about this product is the packaging. It comes as a fairly thick compact as opposed to other products that comes in a tube. I personally like how it looks like and the puff that comes with the product also works pretty well. Aside from that, the compact has a mirror so you don't have to worry about on the go touch ups.

COLOR:

As I've said, I got it in the shade #2 Natural Beige which is a good match for my skin. Unlike other CC Creams, this particular product from THEFACESHOP comes out as a beige tone cream, instead of the usual white ones that changes color upon blending onto the skin. I actually like the color of this CC Cream as opposed to other CC Creams I've tried in counters before.

COVERAGE:

Since CC Cream is known to provide more skin care benefits as opposed to BB Creams, coverage is not really their forte. This item, however, is an exception. It has light to medium coverage and can definitely even out skin tone and hide redness and light blemishes on the skin. Although if you have bumps on your face caused by pimples, I suggest you cover it up with a nice concealer.

CONSISTENCY:

As expected, the product is a little thick but creamy. I prefer to apply it using the puff, as opposed to my fingertips since it blends better with the puff.

FINISH:

It has a slightly dewy finish so I always set it with face powder. To be honest, I don't use this product when I know I would be outdoors since it's very humid here in the Philippines. I only use it when I know I would be using it indoors where air conditioning is expected. It has, however, served me so well during my stay in Japan last December 2013, during winter season.

LONG TERM EFFECTS:

Since I stayed in Japan for 3 weeks, I expected to have dry patches here and there throughout my stay. But that didn't happen. Aside from my usual moisturizer, I feel that this product helped contribute to that.

Now, before I end this post, let me share a demo/ overview video of me using the product with the use of both my fingertips and the sponge that came with the product (comparison).

Holika Holika All That BB Cream : Review

Hi guys! I'm here for a long overdue post regarding a particular BB Cream that I've used last year. I bought this as a gift for my sister but I also got to use it for a few times (with permission, of course) so that I can review it. I actually already have a video up regarding this particular product and at the end of the video, I promised to write a more in depth review on it but I never got to do it shortly after I had the video up so I'm just doing it now.

I got this BB Cream from an online shop called Kkochipida. No, I'm not sponsored. I bought this with my own money and all the things I'm about to say are my personal opinions.

As I've said in the video (if you've watched it), this particular product is not one of Holika Holika's popular items. One of their more known products would have to be their Aqua Petite Jelly BB Cream that has been one of the most raved BB Creams of all time (in youtube) especially during summer season. There's limited review regarding this particular product so I decided to give it a try and tell you guys how my experience was with using it as a makeup base.
PACKAGING:

Let's first talk about the packaging. This particular product comes in a bluish purple packaging with a pump. Yes, it has a pump! Yay! Need I say more? I love pumps! It helps in controlling the amount of product to be dispensed, it's hygienic and it just looks better overall. 

COLOR:

I got the shade no. 2 Natural Beige. At first, I thought that the shade would be too dark for both my sister and I but I tried swatching it at the back of my hand and I then thought it was going to be too fair. After blending everything completely, though, I was fine with the result. The shade is brightening and it has evened out my skin tone.

COVERAGE: With one layer, it has successfully covered some of my imperfections. On a regular basis, I don't use concealer anymore since it already does a good enough job of brightening my under eye area and evening out my skin tone. You can also use two layers for more coverage but for full coverage of pimples and scarring, a little bit of concealer is needed.
CONSISTENCY:

The BB Cream in general is not sticky. At first, you would feel the presence of the BB Cream but in a few minutes, it would be as if you're not wearing anything at all.
FINISH: This has a slightly dewy finish that is suitable for many skin types. I personally am oily and even though it's slightly dewy, it doesn't make me look greasy.
LASTING POWER: I actually just apply this once on my face and I never retouch. Fading occurs right about the 4 hour mark but I only reapply powder and I'm good to go.
LONG TERM EFFECTS: This BB Cream has SPF 27 and a PA ++, which is a good addition to my SPF 60 sunscreen. The packaging is all in Korean so I don't really know what it promises but one good thing about it is that it doesn't break me out.

This is a good BB Cream for everyday use. We already used it up and the only reason why we're not buying another tube is because we want to explore other BB Creams in the market for reviewing purposes but otherwise, I wouldn't mind buying the same product again.

2 in 1 Review: BB Creams (Missha and Colour Collection)

Okay, so I guess some of you have watched my latest youtube upload and some have not. But as promised, I will be doing a more in depth review of these two bb creams that I've been using lately. I won't be doing a long introduction this time around since I will have to talk about two products in one post and a long intro might just bore you and force you to close this tab (or window).

MISSHA SIGNATURE WRINKLE FILLER BB CREAM

The thing that I like the most about this bb cream is the packaging. It looks so lovely, just like a perfume bottle.

I got this BB Cream from an online shop in facebook called Kkochipida. It's an online shop specialized in Korean beauty products. The owner is like a sale expert. She knows when there would be an ongoing sale in the Korean beauty market so she always has a lot of k-beauty products to offer at a cheaper price (compared to other online sites). If you want, you can click on the link above to check her page out.

Before anything else, can I just say that the packaging of this product is B-E-A-U-T-I-F-U-L? It looks like a perfume bottle! It's one of the many reasons why I decided to get this particular product. It also comes with a pump so that's another plus! Another good thing is that this particular bb cream lets you take a peek on the actual product inside so you'd know when you're almost running out. The swirl of brown and white is the actual product, by the way.

COLOR:

I got the shade no. 21.

Primer + BB Cream= Swirl of white and brown

As stated above, the swirl of brown and white is the actual product and when you dispense the product, the normal beige color comes out, along with some of the white. If you look at the demo video, you'd see what I was trying to explain. Initial blending shows a little white cast (probably due to the white part of the bb cream) but once everything has been blended and set, the white cast disappears. I got the shade #21 and it's a pretty good match with my skin with a little bit of brightening effect. 

CONSISTENCY:

This bb cream is quite creamy but not sticky. It takes a little time to set but not a big deal since that gives me more time to blend the product without having to rush.

COVERAGE:

It has a good medium buildable coverage. It was able to even out my skin tone and conceal some of my dark spots.

FINISH:

It has a slight dewy finish. I prefer to set it with powder since I have oily skin but if you want that glowy effect, you can use this product on its own.

LASTING POWER:

Since this bb cream is infused with primer, I feel that this bb cream stays on longer than the others I've used. Probably around 5-6 hours? Truth be told, I never counted. One thing's for sure, though. I never touch up after using this. I do have to blot every now and then but I don't feel the need of having to retouch even if I live in a very humid country.

LONG-TERM EFFECTS:

Now this bb cream claims to have wrinkle improvement properties but since I don't have that much problem in that area, I can't really say anything about that. After using this product, however, my breakouts have lessened so I guess the ingredients (of this product) and my skin are good friends.


COLOUR COLLECTION BB CREAM

Got this particular bb cream from sampleroom.ph

 

 Made in Korea!

Colour Collection was a brand that I never heard of before. I learned about this through a site called Sample Room where they offer different samples of different featured brands/products. There'a point system that I won't be talking about in this page. Basically, though, you don't pay for the samples. You use points! You need to pay for shipping, though. But I think that's okay especially if you're planning to sample more than one product. To learn more about Sample Room and their point system, go to their website as linked above.

Packaging-wise, this bb cream seems to be on the losing end. It's a metallic blue colored squeeze tube packaging and although I have nothing against these types of packaging, I prefer pumps so I guess I'm naturally not impressed with the packaging. Just to be clear though, I am not impressed but definitely not disappointed. To sum it up, I feel neutral about the packaging itself.

There's a foil seal to ensure that the bb cream hasn't been opened yet.

COLOR:

The color is a little bit darker than the usual bb creams I use but since I feel that this bb cream doesn't oxidize on me, it's okay. It still has the brightening effect and matches well with my skin tone.

CONSISTENCY:

This bb cream is creamy, almost colloidal. But I like it. It helps in controlling the product dispensing. Although this bb cream is a little bit heavier than other bb creams I've used, I wouldn't say it's bothersome. It's not lightweight but not overly heavy so I guess it's somewhere in between.

COVERAGE:

It has a good medium buildable coverage. I don't feel the need to use concealers when using this for everyday.

FINISH:

It has a dewy finish which I like to set with powder.

LASTING POWER:

It lasts about 4-5 hours but I'm not really the type of person to count since most of the time, I don't retouch my base makeup.

LONG-TERM EFFECTS:

This bb cream claims to have a whitening effect but I never really noticed any difference in my skin tone after using this.