Skin Care Saturdays: Etude House AC Clinic Intense Mask Sheet

My skin, as I get older, tends to behave itself more.  This is a blessing.  But when my skin doesn't behave, I get these super painful cystic pimples that are the size of a mountain - but all under the skin for about a week.  Then they explode into outer mountains that are made of pus and gross and make me feel like I should run up into a church steeple and ring bells.

This, obviously, is undesirable.

One of the things that helps quite a bit is putting on one of these Etude House sheet masks when I feel one of these pimples coming on.

They're sized pretty generously for sheet masks, as you can see.  Standard packaging too.  One thing I always notice right away is that these are hella saturated.  There's lquid all the heck over, and a lot in the package too.  I'll take that over not enough liquid, but jeezy creezy, it seems like a waste having so much left in the package.

Also: this smells terrible.  It works, but dear god, at what cost?

I can only recommend this to people who have awful, painful pimples like me.  If they're sort of annoying, don't bother - get something that doesn't smell like a tea tree is exploding in your nose.  But if they hurt, if they make you want to rip your face off, go for it.  Just don't say I didn't warn you.

I got these from KoreaDepart for 10.00 for five of them USD, so about two bucks each before shipping.  If you only want one or so at a time, pretty much any korean reseller should have these.  

Disclaimer: This product was purchased by me.  No compensation was received. All opinions are my own.  I am not affiliated with this seller.

Quick and Dirty - Work Makeup

Crap.  You just woke up, and you're running late for work.  Awesome.  You're not already late, so you could in theory do your makeup, but you only have about ten minutes - and you're not the best in the world with the makeup. Some people would say that is not enough time.

Those people are dumb.  Ten minutes is plenty of time.  Here's what I use to get my OH CRAP work makeup face on.  Roommate clocked me at eight and a half minutes, and I wouldn't say any of it is really that hard.  Ka-bam.

First thing I do is bust out the Urban Decay Eyeshadow Primer Potion (20.00 USD).  I like Sin, because it looks pretty on its own if I'm feeling super knackered, but any primer will work.  Don't have primer?  Put a bit of concealer on your lids with a finger.  HURRY UP YOU'RE RUNNING LATE.  

picture from urbandecay.com

While the primer is setting a bit (I don't ever put eye shadow directly onto just-wet primer), I put on Skin79 Hot Pink BB Cream (24.99 USD direct from Skin79, I paid 12.99 USD from a reseller on eBay).  

picture from skin79northamerica.com

I like this because it knocks out about 75% of my flaws in one go, it keeps my skin matte, and I've genuinely noticed a difference in how it helps with dark marks left by my cystic acne.  (I'll go more into BB creams in a later post, but until then, Musings of a Muse is the internet authority on them.  Go read for extra credit!)  You could also use a tinted moisturizer or face primer at this step.  A lot of it depends on how good your skin is.  Just rub that stuff on your face, focusing on your problem areas.

Hokay, we've got that spackled on.  Let's go back to the eyes.  For work in a hurry, we're not doing one of those five-shadow looks.  You've got places to be.  We're using two.  For me, I use Urban Decay Eye Shadow in Scratch (18.00 USD) all over the eye.

picture from urbandecay.com

You don't even need to use a little brush, a crease brush here will work (one of those bigger fluffy ones).  Screw it, use your finger if you wanna.

Done.  Now, for some fun and some pop, I use Sugarpill loose powder in Decora (12.00 USD).

picture from sugarpillshop.com

(Please note: I'm a pretty tan girl with big glasses.  If Decora's too much of a bright girl for you, you could also try Birthday Girl (12.00 USD) the same way.) Use the same fluffy brush and put that in the crease, going up as far as you want to toward your browbone.

You can curl your lashes, depending on how much time you have.  Slap some eyeliner on (I use Sephora's kohl liner in black because it's easy to apply in time crunches, and because it was 3.00 USD on clearance when I bought it.)  Put some mascara on - I use Tarte's Lights, Camera, Lashes! (19.00 USD) religiously because I don't have to curl my lashes when I'm in a hurry when I use it.

from tarte.com

Okay, eyes done.  Let's cover up the rest of my terribad face.  I use Benefit's Play Sticks in Tea Party (36.00 USD) since it's got good enough coverage to function as a concealer and a foundation at the same time. 

from benefitcosmetics.com

I just use this under my eyes and on any problem areas and then spackle it on with a densely packed brush.  You can use your fingers, depending on how big of a hurry you're in.  Slap on some powder to set it (any sort of translucent powder will do, but if you have awful skin like me, you can use some pressed powder with a fluffy brush - I use Hello, Flawless! by Benefit in Honey (34.00 USD)).

Okay, face done.  Blush.  When I'm in a hurry, the last thing I want to do is mess around with powder.  I use Majolica Majorca Blood On (I paid 12.00 USD on eBay), a sheer gel blush that makes me look naturally flushed.  I use it on my lips, too.

Speaking of lips - use a stain or if you're using a gel/cream blush, slap that on there.  If you're using a stain, pop some lip balm on there.  You're going to work, hooker, not the club.  Chapstick, whatever, just something to make your mouth look dewy.

BAM.  Done.  Hopefully it took you less than ten minutes.  NOW RUN.

Not dead yet!

I suck at this.  Well.  Not entirely.  I was in the hospital off and on from May through August, then September and October I spent gearing up for a move from Texas to Illinois.  SO.  Now that I'm settled, I'm going to shoot for updating this two to three times a week.  I am, however, starting a job soon too, so that may end up being two times more often than I'd like.

Blah blah, I'm so sorry, NAKED 3 GET UN-SOLD OUT PLEASE, yadda yadda.

Skin Care Saturdays - Etude House Moistfull Collagen Firming Eye Cream

I'm slowly but surely turning into a nail polish & Asian skin care blog.  Whatever.  YOLO, or something kids of this day and age would say.  I'm just really in love with what skin care products and makeup I've gotten from Japan and South Korea, and nail polish is my thing.  

My long hiatus was due to spending the past two months in and out of the hospital off and on.  My stomach was killing me - it felt like I was being stabbed - and we're only finally just now figuring out what the heck is the matter.  Hopefully I'll be able to blog more in future.

Anyway!  Eye cream!  I don't really use these often, but while I was back here in the apartment after a hospital visit, I noticed I had dark, hollow circles under my eyes that made me look like a corpse.  Not cute.  I had a sample of this stuff, Etude House's Moistfull Collagen Firming Eye Cream, and I tried it.  The next day, I looked human again.  That's a got to have product for me, so I ordered the full size the next day.

The packaging isn't anything special compared to other Etude House offerings, but what the heck do you want from them?  It's friggen eye cream.

It's a bit on the thicker side of a gel, almost like a gel that's en route to being a cream.  This is  helped by its fairly quick absorption.

I never thought I'd buy anything that had "moistfull" in the description, but this has been helping loads with my dark circles and undereye droopy. It smells super flowery and girlie almost to the point of being overpowering.  Fortunately the smell fades quickly and leaves a nice aftersmell (think aftertaste but for your nose).   I got mine for about 11.00 USD from an eBay seller, but you'll be able to find it online anywhere from 11.00 USD to 15.00 USD for the full sized jar (50 ml).  

Skin Care Saturdays - The Face Shop Vitamin B Hydro Gel Mask Sheet

I'm a fan of sheet masks, but I was unfamiliar with the "hydro gel" mask.  So what the hell, I figured, let's do it and try it out.

The packaging is also adorable as fuck.

Okay, so I could handle this.  Basically, it's a sheet mask that has this plastic backing on it.  You stick the part that had the backing on your face, just like a sheet mask, only the mask itself is made of a more plasticky material.  One thing I did like about this mask is that it came in two parts, so it seemed to fit a lot better on my face.

It also makes you look like a serial killer.  But that's fine!  It smelled pretty decent, not fruity like you'd expect from a star fruit product, but just the sort of clean smell I've come to expect from Face Shop products.  After twenty minutes, most of the essence was absorbed into my skin and I didn't have much left over.  It also seemed to help with my dark circles, somehow.  The only downside to this is that it was more expensive than other sheet masks I've gotten from The Face Shop.

If you're a serial killer on the go who wants a little extra hydration, these are a must.  I guess if you're a normal person, it's good for you too.

Makeup Time: Urban Decay Haul

Urban Decay's been around for like, fifteen years.  When I say that, it makes me feel really old, which I suppose I am in terms of bloggers, but sheesh.  They've been around since '96.  I was sixteen then, and Urban Decay had colors and their colors had names that were absolutely up my alley.  I used to wear Asphyxia and Pallor lipsticks at the same time, and I eventually owned every single one of their nail polishes.  That's right, UD used to make nail polish.  Recently, to celebrate their 15th, they released two nail polishes.  I couldn't justify the silver holo to myself, but I sure as hell got the purple shimmery one because yes, even though I've got fifteen purple shimmery polishes, I need more.  Dammit.  And that lead to a minihaul.

Fishnet, the closest thing I have to a "signature" eye color (I've gone through four of them) is on sale for four dollars.  It's a gorgeous shimmery purple color.

I also got Vice, the aforementioned UD nail polish.  I haven't worn it yet, but I'll snap a photo when I do!  They're 15.00 USD right now, and I believe only on urbandecay.com.

The fucking topper has a skull on it.  I could die.  I also snagged one of the Revolution lipsticks, since I'm kind of leaning more toward lipstick than lipgloss as I age.  I'm just lazy nowadays.  These are 22.00 USD.

That for some reason I forgot to swatch.  Derp.  And because UD reformulated their De-Slick compacts, they're selling the old stock for 16.00 USD.  So I grabbed one of those too because one can never de-slick enough when they live in Houston in summertime.

I wish UD would do more nail polishes.  Maybe sometime soon?

Skin Care Saturdays - The Face Shop Real Nature Sheet Mask in Kelp

I love skin care.  I wasn't blessed with good skin, so for me, it's honestly less about vanity and more about 'how do I avoid painful cystic acne outbreaks that will take a month or so to resolve'.  Emphasis on the painful.  So doting on my skin, lovingly putting on toner and masks and creams - that's just me hoping that pimples won't happen.  But they always do, because life is cruel and unfair and likes to smash your dreams.  (I'm still waiting to become a vampire lawyer, world.  Four year old me is disappointed this never happened.)    But we'll still always try new stuff.

Which is why I snagged this sheet mask.

Protip for the non-beauty inclined: if you see "purifying" on face stuff, it's good for oily skin / blackheads / pimples nine times out of ten.

I'm sure one of you guys reads Hangul, so have at!

Some of you may be wondering what a sheet mask is.  It's basically what it sounds like; it's a sheet of fabric that's soaked in whatever awesome essence that mask is gonna help your face soak in.  Some of them will fit well, most of them won't, because we all have different faces.  They're way more popular in Asia than here in the US, though.

The first thing I liked about this mask was that it was hella saturated in the mask.  Some sheet masks give you a puddle of essence in the package but not much on the mask itself. So I felt I got my three bucks' worth.  As for fit, well.

For a sheet mask, this is the best fit I've ever seen.  It actually gave me enough room to get it on all of the blackheaddy parts of my nose.  (That's a word now.  I say so.)

It smelled really good too, which I like.  If something's going to be on my face for fifteen minutes, it'd better smell good.  I left it on until it dried out, so about thirty minutes, and noticed no ill effects.  My skin felt soft and not greasy, and a pimple that had been threatening to surface came to a head - a sure sign that the mask helped extract some gross nasties from my skin.

If you're cursed like me, I highly recommend these.  Don't be scared of kelp!  It's in your toothpaste, you know.  I've seen these for 1.50 each at resellers; I paid 3.00 at The Face Shop directly.

Haul - The Face Shop

It comes as no surprise to people who read my blog with any amount of regularity that I adore Asian makeup brands.  They're just good, and resellers have their stuff on the cheap.  But sometimes I don't want to wait three weeks for my stuff.  Sometimes, to quote Veruca Salt, I want it now.  I'm lucky enough to live in Houston where I can actually do that.  There's a Face Shop store about twenty minutes from my house.  Instant.  Gratification.  I love it.  What I don't love is that the prices are ridiculously higher; masks that you can get from Roseroseshop or Kocomall are 3.00 each instead of 1.25 (all prices mentioned are USD).  One of the items I paid 40.00 for in store, I saw on Amazon from a reseller for 17.00.  So, instant gratification does have its price.  However: I'm guaranteed that these are all 100% authentic, and oh yeah - NO WAITING FOR A MONTH.  Here's my loots!

It's like a beacon of hope!

So.  Much.  Stuff.

As you can see, I got a metric fucktonne of sheet masks.  I also got my beloved Herb Day Cleansing Tissues in the big 75 count size because they tingle and smell awesome.  When it's balls hot in Houston (as it always is), it's just the thing for when I've come in from outside.

So these are some of their Real Nature Masks.  I just snagged one in every kind they had available because I'm a weirdo and do things like that.

These are Hydro Gel Mask Sheets because that just makes it sound all spiffing and technical and awesome.

How can I live without you, Herb Day Cleansing Tissue?  I want to knooooooooow~.  Whoops, sorry.

It's hand lotion that's shaped like a cat in a flower pot and smells like baby powder.  I don't think I have to say more than that.

And here's a really blurry picture of the CC cream I got.  Still - I can cross something off of my covet list.  Yay!

Because I spent over a hundred dollars (because boo, retail is expensive!), I got free cotton pads (... yay, I guess?) and an AWESOME sample kit.

The sample kit has a whole sheet mask in it by itself, and some generous face wash / moisturizer samples.  All in all, I'm super stoked, and I hope you are too, because you're going to get craploads of sheet mask reviews.  YOU'RE WELCOME.  *drops mic and leaves*

Things I Desperately Want

I've seen them called "lemming lists", but for me, they're just things I desperately want right now.  This list is partly for you to go 'ooooo' at, but it's also for me for future shopping reference!

1) Tony Moly Floria Active Peeling Gel

2) Etude House Moistfull Collagen Eye Cream

3) Chanel Nail - Taboo

4) Too Cool for School - Smoky Nude Lipcolor

5) Too Cool for School - Max Pack Bag

6) The Face Shop - Face It Aura CC Cream

There'll be other posts like this in the future, but this is all what I can think of off of the top of my head at the moment!  What are you guys coveting?

Sarah and The Mary Kay Look

I'm a whore for free stuff, I'm not going to lie to any of you.  It's why I've shared reviews of stuff I've gotten from Bzzzagent and Influenster in the past.  But this time, Influenster sent me a box that was filled with stuff from Mary Kay.  This was like, the holy shit motherload of free stuff, you guys, and I'm nearly giddy.

Mary Kay is a brand I've never really played with before; it seems to be marketed toward a demographic a bit older than I am, and I honestly don't know anyone who sells it.  But now that I know I can buy it online, my mind is changing in favor of grabbing some more products.  Here's what Influenster sent me.

LOOK AT HOW CUTE THE INSIDE OF THE BOX IS!

Holy shitballs, Batman, that's a lot of stuff!

Well, naturally me being me, I went to open up the cream eye shadow first.  I use a lot of loose eyeshadow, and pressed eyeshadows, but not so much creams.  Color me intrigued!

That was just one swipe of the cream shadow; it's a very dark purple that I'm hoping will build up to something even prettier.  I also got a brush with which to apply cream shadow.  I LOVE BRUSHES.

I will always take mascara.  I don't know if it'll be able to dethrone my current Holy Grail mascara, Tarte's Lights, Camera, Lashes!, but we'll see.  And lash ... primer?  Ohhhhkay.  I haven't tried one of those since Origins' Underwear For Lashes didn't do anything back in high school.  But like I said, I'll try anything once!  (I'll review it once I've given it a go.)

Lastly, I got a lipstick in Pink Cherie.  This pink isn't the sort of color I'd usually go for - it's kind of bright on me - but the forumla feels nice.  Not too gloopy, almost balm-y, not too waxy either.

All things considered, the cute packaging and the pretty colors are convincing me to give Mary Kay another look.  I hope the eye shadow and mascara live up to the hype, and I'd love the lipstick in another color.  The lash primer I'm not holding out much hope for, but that's a bias against the idea of lash primer in general, not just Mary Kay.

Do you use Mary Kay?  How's your day goin'?

Disclaimer: This product was provided by a third party for reviewing purposes.  No compensation was received. All opinions are my own.