Blog Sale: All items are $3!

So I've decided to do a blog sale, and get rid of some color products from VOV. Everything is used 3x max. Enjoy!


Jadilla J Concealer: three sections with blemish concealer, dark circles concealer, and highlighter

VOV Chiffon base for eyes and cheeks

Two lip glaze

VOV face clear concealer

VOV bronzer

VOV highlighter

VOV lip glosses:

VOV eyeshadow sticks

VOV eyeshadows:

VOV highlighters:

See pics here:
http://tinypic.com/a/28vb8/1

VOV Goodbye Eyepender Green Tea Eyeliner Review--a tubing eyeliner!

I discovered this gem of an eyeliner during my second trip in Korea. VOV just started producing this line of green tea eyeliners, and I was intrigued by the green color of the packaging, which I love. I couldn't stop myself from grabbing one, since VOV is known for its affordable price (usually drugstore price) without compromising quality. For those who do not know about VOV, VOV is a Korean brand I love. I find that it has many great color makeup items. While it also has a lot of facial makeup items (e.g. foundation, primer, skincare, and its BB cream is quite good), I was more intrigued by its color collection. Since I've discovered VOV, I've forsaken MAC items, because I found the quality of VOV better. Even though they do not have as many colors as MAC, they mostly develop more "wearable" colors, so I do not mind. Sometimes when I was able to find them on sale, its eyeshadow and lip products are around 3.5 dollars, and has such great quality that I sometimes wear their lip gloss instead of my pricey Dior and Chanel lip glosses. The only downside is that there is no return policy, which I find somewhat essential for most color products, but then, Korea is like that.

So enough about VOV. Let's talk about the eyeliner! Every time I go to Korea, I usually get more than 7 CP requests for it because people who started using it are usually hooked! 

What is special about it? If you have tried tubing mascara like Fiberwig or L'Oreal Beauty Tubes, you know how convenient they are. They goes on like regular mascara, but never smudges. It also stays mostly waterproof throughout the day, unless you go swimming in warm water. At night, when you step into the shower, you can gently slide it off in tubes with warm water. The really cool thing is that it really only removes with warm water when you slide it off. Usually, just warm water wouldn't be able to remove it (you have to slide it off with your fingers), unless there's an abundant amount of warm water. This is also what I really love about it, because I'm a crybaby. My tears are warm, but if I don't rub my eyes, it will stay on.

Guess what? This eyeliner has the same technology. It goes on like a regular liquid eyeliner, albeit with a more gel like consistency, which I neither hate or love. It stays on during the day, with zero smudging, which is a huge problem with me. (I can never wear smudged eyeliner because within three hours, it will travel around my eyes, causing panda like eyes.) But it removes with warm water at night. Even better, it just goes off with no rubbing. 

What do I love about it? Well, I love that I can finally wear eyeliner, even on the waterline! Pencil eyeliner never lasts on me without smudging, so I usually have to resort to liquid eyeliner. However, I don't like to use waterproof liquid eyeliner, because it's really a hassle to remove, and I hate to use eye makeup remover. So if I get up early in the morning, my eyes would be teary, and the liquid eyeliner would melt with the water, making it seem as if I'm running black tears.... I used to hate it when during an early morning class, the whole class turns to stare at me when I would speak in amazement, because I had black tears!

How do I use it? You can use it as you would use a regular liquid eyeliner, but I especially love it for tightlining, since for me, my tightliner rarely stays on with other mascara. I use look up and apply to the base of my eyelashes after I'm done with mascara. 

In case you are wondering, eyepender is a licensed line of item of VOV. It's a mispelling. It was supposed to be eye panda. So together "Goodbye Eyepender" means goodbye to panda eyes! This line of item also has a mascara, and two different liners, one in marker form, and one in a felt tip pen form. Since I'm quite familiar with liquid eyeliner, I chose this one, but if you are not so used to it, the marker or felt tip ones may be easier to apply!

VOV Anti-Trouble BB Cream Review

This BB cream came from the esteemed korean brand VOV, and was on sale, so I gleefully bought a tube of it in the lightest color. Anti-trouble also sounded quite appealing. Turns out, the product name accurately describes it if you remove the "anti"--trouble bb cream.

It wasn't quite that bad, considering I was sane enough to try it on the back of my ears first. The coverage was sheer medium, which is fine, and it gives a semi-matte finish that I am not very found of. It just don't look that natural. The oil-control was unbelievably good. The first time I tried this, it lasted 18 hours (with the coverage nearly gone), however, my ears did not oil up at all, which is not so normal for me, considering I used rich leave in conditioner on my hair that day. After I removed it, the area behind my ears was a bright red.

I thought that maybe I left it on for too long (although frankly, if a makeup causes strange reactions after a certain number of hours, one should not use it). The second time I tested it, I promptly washed it off after 6 hours, but I still had that redness.

I gave this to my friend Julia's young daughter, who was brave enough to do a whole face. She told me that she had dry patches surrounding where she has acne, and got red bumps under her nose, where she applied a lot considering the oil control. She has oily skin, by the way. She left it on for a whole school day, which is around 8 hours, and the coverage was somehow gone by midday.

I have not tried a full face of this yet, and I do not plan to. I am not selling samples of this because both me and Julia's daughter, Lucy had bad reactions. However, if anyone want samples or even the whole tube, which has 99% of product left, please comment or email me. :) I would advise against trying this unless you are very adventurous. I am sure that a BB cream from such a famous brand would work for some, but I am just not sure who.

someone's been shopping :)

Last time I went to Korea, I was so dazzled by the christmas special cosmetics that I bought a lot, so much that they can fit into my carry-on suitcase. So a coworker in Korea brought this package for me. :)

reviews coming up :) 

VOV Castledew blur shot review

This is also a part of my castledew haul. I was blown away by the cute packaging and the glowing reviews.

This is the color #1. This is a very good highlighter that looks very natural. It is a small circle of very fine shimmery powder surrounded by a pinkish light powder. I apply this by swirling my brush across the whole pact. If I want a little more shimmer, like on my nose, I just use the shimmery part. If I am looking for an ultra natural finish, I just use the outer ring of pinkish powder.

This is the color #3. The middle color #2 is a purplish highlighter. From experience, I know it will look unnaturally white, so I did not buy it. On my fair skin, this acts as a bronzer.
However, on my friend Julia who has slightly darker skin, NC 35ish, this is actually a natural highlighter. So it really depends on the skin tone.


Both compacts have a second layer under the powder. It contains a mini brush and a mirror.



Overall, I really love those products, but it seems I can't use highlighter very well. I've tried so many, highbeam by benefit, and most of the powders sold by U.S. brands, but unless I am very careful, I get the highlighter on the wrong places of my face 90% of my face, causing my face to look rounder or weird.

If anyone is interested, I am selling #1 at $7, since I used it 2x. I think I bought it at $11ish or so. I am selling #3 at $7 also, and I've used it 1x on myself and 1x on my friend Julia's face.

I used a newly washed brush both times (i wash my bobbi brown brushes once a day), so please don't worry about the hygiene.

VOV Volume Blusher review

This is a blush by VOV. Not quite the princessy castledew series, but this one looks quite elegant in its packaging, so I couldn't resist.

Another reason I couldn't resist is the marble finish of the blush. It looks so pretty, so I bought it. As you can see, it comes with a compact mirror but no applicators. A coworker in Korea actually gave me a small brush by VOV to use with this. Apparently something she got with another purchase. The small brush is very typical of included applicators meaning that it is unusable. :D

I only used this once, before realizing that the color may be a little red for me. I think the color is closest to benefit's benetint, but unfortunately, I am a posietint person, so... 

The finish is very glowy, since it seem to have very fine shimmers on the surface, but I imagine that the shimmers will go away by the 10th application. This lasted 6 hours flawlessly before I finally washed it off because I was self conscious about the reddish blush that does not look 100% natural on me, although my friends told me I look fine. :)

If anyone wants this, I will let it go for $6. I got it for $12, and used it 1x.  Sold 

VOV Castledew eyeshadow review

I did a huge haul recently of VOV castledew stuff, not because there was a sale going on, but because I just cannot resist the princessy packaging :)

The packaging actually looks more cute than it does in the picture. I am still waiting to get my new camera, so just bear with the poor quality pictures my three year old camera takes. As you can see, the packaging is mostly shiny metallic finish, with crystal like glass fringes surrounding it reflecting the light.

This is the inside. It comes with a huge mirror and two applicators. The colors are baked, which I vastly prefer over pressed eyeshadow (the type that is dominantly sold in the U.S.). Baked eyeshadow gives more control during application. If I want a sheer coat, I can just swipe my brush across it, but it is very layerable to a full coverage finish. Baked eyeshadow also tend to last longer on my oily lids without creasing than pressed shadows.

I love the colors. As you can see, it is designed such that the three colors lined vertically make good color trios, but I can mix and match as I wish, of course. I really like the brown color in the corner. It is a very good eyebrow color in a pinch, and lasts all day. Unlike most eyebrow colors I tried, this one does not have a reddish undertone, and when applied lightly, actually looks very natural. I think the color is very similar to the anastasia brow duo in medium ash.

Overall I really like it. I have only used all the colors 2x, and the brown color 5x. Since I've been getting into nude makeup (really natural makeup that enhances but is kind of invisible), so if anyone wants it, I can sell it for $10. 

Jadilla J Whitening BB cream review + samples

So my quick take is:

Coverage: Sheer to medium, safe texture as the VOV castledew one. The coverage is buildable up to a little more than medium.

Oil-control: 10 hours without powder. Since I don't like powder, and I think 10 hours is enough, I haven't tried it with powder yet.

Color: conservatively, would suit NC/NW 15 (or fairer) to NC/NW 35 skins. It looks a little darker than the VOV Castledew BB cream, but upon application, I can't see the difference.

Finish: believable glow

Special properties: slightly moisturizing, whitening, evens skin-tone slight anti-aging, SPF 30

Overall: Very similar to the VOV castledew BB cream except for the higher SPF. I think sensitive skins should stick with the VOV Castledew BB cream. I did not react to the Jadilla J BB cream, but the VOV BB cream contains jojoba oil, whereas this one contains sweet almond oil. Jojoba oil is supposed to be less possible to clog pores. On a scale from 0-5 of which oils are more likely to clog pores, jojoba oil rates a 0, while sweet almond oil rates a 2.

Price:

5ml--$4 + shipping (should be below $2 within US)

Please email me about larger sizes.

Review: So this is the Jadilla J Whitening BB plus with SPF 30, which is my friend Julia's HG, who introduce me to BB creams. It claims:

1. Super Sun protection, since it has SPF 30, with PA ++, which I suppose is sufficient for most of my days, since I spend most of my time in the office, and only go out for lunch, it should be enough for me.

2. Super Skincare, since it claims to contain superior moisture, sweet almond oil, and soothing ingredients aloe vera. Both are favorites of mine, since sweet almond oil evens skin tone, while I just love aloe vera for the moisturized, yet not sticky feeling upon application. The BB cream also contains Arbutin, which should be quite safe since it passed the Korean FDA regulations, and the Koreans seem to be even stricter on cosmetics than us.

3. Super Whitening. I noticed that "whitening" in BB creams is not so much lightening the skin tone as lightening spots, which will allow more even skin tone, although I imagine that with continue use, it might lighten the entire skin tone slightly, but I would not count on it, since Koreans use toner, moisturizer, serum and night creams for whitening, and sometimes even cleanser. Those skincare products contain much more effective whitening ingredients, so I think since no one counts on BB creams for "whitening" anyway, it would not contain very effective ingredients in that regards.

(Just a side note, Koreans use BB cream because 1. foundation is supposed to be damaging in the long run, while BB cream is supposed to be good for your skin. 2. it gives a much more natural look than foundation, which is why many BB creams give a glowy rather than matte finish; However, it also provides quite good coverage. 3. It is good for sensitive and blemish prone skin since it claim to calm the skin and not irritate it, hence the name blemish balm. 4. It evens the marks left by acnes, and freckles. This is a property I have witnessed first hand.)

4. Super Makeup: This BB cream can act as primer+foundation+concealer, if you don't need anything too heavy.

VOV Castledew Whitening BB Cream review + samples

Summary:

Coverage: Sheer to medium, but buildable to a little more than medium without looking unnatural

Oil-control: 8 hours without powder, and 12+ with powder. I washed it off looking flawless at 12 hours

Color: conservatively, would suit NC/NW 15 (or fairer) to NC/NW 30 skins. I suspect NC/NW 35 will look good in it too.

Finish: believable glow

Special properties: slightly moisturizing, whitening, slight anti-aging, SPF 15

Overall: Happy with this product

Price:

5ml--$4 + shipping (should be below $2 within US)

10ml--$7.5 + shipping

15ml--$10.5 +shipping

20ml--$13 +shipping

Now read on if you want to hear to whole story (which is rather long)

This is the VOV Castledew Whitening BB Cream, also the first BB Cream I have tried. As I explained in my earlier post. I was traveling in May for 10 days. Because I had to fly, I did not feel like carrying on board my morning cleanser, toner, moisturizer, serum, primer, foundation, and nighttime cleanser. I also know myself well enough to know that if I did not bring any of my essentials, I would buy them wherever I was. This is when my friend Julia introduced me to BB creams. As she helped me pick out which clothes to bring, she told me that I can actually bring along BB cream to substitute my heavy glass bottles of primer and foundation. Since she did not actually suggest I do without, I was open to suggestions. She was very generous, and gave me this BB cream to try out, since it did not work out for her, it being a little pale. (The funny thing is no one said the color is too pale when she was wearing it, but she herself felt it was too pale. I thought the color match was okay...)

I was skeptical, but since there was only three days till my flight and I refuse to check in a heavy case with only my cosmetics, I tried it anyway. It was surprisingly good. The color was just right for me. (She bought the first color, bright skin beige) I am NW20 (in mac terms), while my friend was NC 30. The color worked for me perfectly. Since BB cream changes color after being on skin, I imagine it would work for people from NC/NW15 to NC/NW30.

The consistency was medium, a little thicker than an average foundation, but it was really easy to spread--much easier to spread than foundation. It gave a glowy finish that's believable, not too dewy. The coverage was good, for me at least. I would say the coverage is sheer-medium, so it was enough for me. The coverage is buildable to a certain degree. I think you can get a little more than medium coverage without feeling heavy. The SPF level was 15, which is good enough for winter, but since it was May, I applied SPF 90 under it anyway.

Applying it on my hand, I found it rather moisturizing. After a day, I found that my hand looked just fine, without any reactions, so I deemed it safe enough to put on my face. I somehow got the courage to skip moisturizer under it, since like I said, it felt rather moisturizing on my hand. Surprisingly, my skin didn't feel too dry, although I would definitely not do this in winter.

So I went on my vacation with only my cleansers, serum, and bb cream (I bought sunscreen later). After ten days of usage, my skin looked good, and more even than it was before. The whitening ingredients in the BB cream lightened my past acne spots, and I did not break out even though it was that time of the month. I was very happy with it. However, my skin did feel a little drier although it was nothing serious. After slathering on some moisturizer, my skin was as moist as 10 days ago.

However, Julia (who has found her HG) said that this is mere puppy love for me. She said that when I find my HG, I should feel like I am using advanced skincare products. I don't know. I think this is pretty good, but I didn't doubt my friend. So I'm on the quest for my HG BB Cream!