**This post is about the case and not the newly formulated cushion foundations!**

Long time no see! This blog has been abandoned for almost a year... Real life really puts you in for a spin whenever it feels like it. I've been working at the same place for the past year and life was just really up and down for me in a lot of aspects. Truthfully, it still kind of is and I don't have as much time and money to put into buying and trying new cosmetics anymore. I've had some posts written up but I didn't like them so I never posted them and just deleted them. I'm not as serious about the whole blogging thing as others but I still don't like publishing bad posts since people actually read them.

I recently came back from my three week trip to Korea, though not buying much, I ended up having to buy new cushions when I found all my favourite cushions repackaged and reformulated. Imagine my disappointment when I found out that I couldn't even buy refills for my favourite IOPE XP Cushion... I wasn't really a fan of the shape of the new IOPE cushion cases, they're very... rounded? Maybe I would've liked the new formulas but I decided not to buy it in the end (in other to buy a HERA cushion). BUT, I am thinking of purchasing one since there's a discount on them at the amorepacificmall right now...

2014 Ampoule Intense Cushion Case v.s. 2016 My Cushion Project Case

Anyway, I found out Innisfree also repackaged their cushions and cases. This change I welcomed happily because the old cushion case had this really annoying problem where changing your refill was a giant pain while the new cushion case implements what most other cushion cases already had, a hole on the bottom to push the refill out. Hallelujah.

Even with the hole in the bottom, it's still slightly tough to remove the refill.

You know what else is great about the new revamped cushion? Innisfree has made an array of patterned and coloured cases to choose from rather than a default case. It isn't so great that you have to buy the case and cushion separately now but overall, the price is the same and there are more options. The cases are a soft matte texture with innisfree printed on the top compared to the old glossy feel with the brand and cushion type text. In terms of case choices, there are twelve base colours and each colour has ~8 different designs to choose from, in total there are about 100 different cases to choose from before any special editions! (They actually have the Summer Edition ones out in Korea right now!)

The new case is about 3.5mm shorter than the old case.

There definitely weren't 100 different choices when I went to the store to buy it but there were enough to make me stand there for 10 minutes debating which one to get. Ultimately, I went for the solid pastel pink one, because it looked simple.  The case is also a bit smaller and has less rounded edges. The button clasp is also a light white gold (?) colour which makes the case even more pretty but I find the clasp a bit hard to press open since the lock is a lot more shallow now.

The bottom of the new version is a lot thinner without the extra plastic.

On top of have new cases and refills, there are new formulas. I'm not sure if it's new because I don't use the Longwear version, but there's now Longwear Waterproof as well! Each of the original three formulas now come in N-Natural or C-Cover. Natural leans more towards beige, and Cover leans more towards pink. As you can see from my photos though, I haven't opened the new formula cushion yet... I'll probably try it out in the colder months since it is slowly becoming summer in our Great North.

It is important to note that old refills will not fit into the new cushion cases as the old refills are slightly too wide for the new cases. New refills also do not fit into the old case as they aren't big enough to lock into them. So, if you're thinking of buying a new case or even just a new refill, make sure you find a posting of the version compatible to either your case or your refills.

You can check out the entire new My Cushion event on the Korean Innisfree page. You can click step three to look at all the case colours and designs!

I haven't hauled anything in so long... Concert tickets are expensive and I've been trying to use up what skincare I already have. But with the free time at work, I've lurking the Asian Beauty sub-reddit and reading a lot. After seeing so many opinions and general liking of "BAE" I decided to do an order with them. I can say I wasn't disappointed.

I picked up a few items for an impression haul, chose some well raved products and some that I was just curious about. I received this package in June but never got the chance to finish writing a post, it's late and I already got another Jolse haul but better late than never, right?

You get free standard shipping and tracking for orders over $40USD, which is pretty nice. If you wanted tracking without being on the price tier, it's only $2.50 for tracking itself. My order took about 2 days to be processed and shipped, and another 2 weeks to arrive. In terms of speed, it was right on time, 10 business days.

I got a haul in between the $75 and $100 mark to try out their samples variety since you get to choose a free full sized gift at the $100 tier. They gave a pretty decent variety of samples from make-up to skincare and included a sheet mask ($50 tier) and a scrub glove (not shown; $70 tier). Since it was my first time hauling from them, I expected to be impressed this much; second haul, that's another post. Didn't know TonyMoly had packets for hand cream samples though, interesting.

There were some leakage horror stories I've read about certain products but all my products came in perfect condition and beautifully bubble wrapped. They also markdown the customs sheet by a lot, I mean, quite a lot and checks them off as gifts. My order was over $70, but they marked it down to $7. The package passed customs safely and freely into my hands.

In terms of variety in brands that Jolse offers, you'll definitely be able to find the usual suspects like Skin Food, Etude House, Innisfree, Nature Republic, Missha, and all that other jazz. Products are updated pretty frequently so you won't miss out on trying the newest products hot of the press from Korea. There's also always something in the 1+1 section and often there are sales and discounts. The pricing for the products aren't too bad either, if not for the conversion rates.

If you like samples and free shipping, I recommend giving Jolse a try.

Here's the lineup of this time's haul:

• OST C20 Serum
• the SAEM Ubran Eco Harakeke Essence
• the SAEM Cover Perfect Tip Concealer
• CosRX Natural BHA Skin Returning Emulsion
• CosRX AHA Whitehead Power Liquid

Initially, I was looking for an emulsion for my acne-prone sister and heard good things about actives. I have never had an actual active step in my skincare before so I thought it'd be good to try and compare.

Picked up two CosRX products, both with or is an active itself. I chose to go with the BHA Emulsion first to ease my skin into using an active, I'm not ready for the purging to happen with the full BHA Blackhead Liquid. I still purged a bit, not a bit, but not a lot. It might've happened slower since it supposedly has a lower concentrate of BHA than the Blackhead Liquid. At first I started at night only, then I switched to morning only, I've also tried both day and night. I tried this in a span of a month, but I found it to be best used in the morning, since I did AHA every three days in the evening. Using the BHA emulsion day and night started to over-exfoliate me so I slowed down the routine again recently.

I'll probably hand over the emulsion to my sister now that's I've got my skin used to everything and I'll purchase the BHA Blackhead Liquid in a new haul sometime later.

My the SAEM Harakeke Essence was to mainly to replace my TFS Smim Dew Fermentation Moisturizing Essence which I reluctantly finished. It was a really nice serum but it didn't do enough for me to justify buying it in full price (I got it on discount). I'm liking the Harakeke Essence right now, although I think my skin was a bit sensitive to something when I first tried it.

I got the Cover Perfect Tip Concealer as well since it was quite popular among certain beauty bloggers. It's not bad but it definitely oxidizes and does become dry through the day. I got it in shade 1.5, which works well for my dark circles but not that well for the rest of my face. It's just a slight shade darker so I might look at buying shade 1 in the future. This concealer also has SPF 28, PA++ for those interested.

I haven't used my C20 yet since I just started on the acids, I've been meaning to try it sometime, so maybe this week. It's just been fitting comfy in my fridge for the past while, I think my skin's calmed enough to finally start.

Finding time to write these days isn't hard but the motivation to write is floating around somewhere. I guess I also haven't been buying much either in the past couple of months, so there's that. Most of my money these days have been going to upcoming concerts and events. I, for some reason or other, splurged to see Bangtan in September... and of course, that BIGBANG concert this coming October wasn't cheap.

Summer is a blackhole for money.

Happy May everyone, the weather is getting so much nicer and warmer as if summer has come early. After about half a month, I finally received my package from Etude House, I'm still kind of bitter about missing out on the Spring palette but I got the Dreaming Swan Collection to soothe that saltiness down.

Gorgeous illustrations on packaging by Kerrie Hess.

I didn't get every single item since I liked some colours more than others and don't need any more lipstick than I already have. I also did not get the nail collection, although I kind of regret it, since I changed jobs I haven't done my nails that often. The illustrations on the packaging for the entire collection are by the fashion illustrator Kerrie Hess, thus everything looks absolutely gorgeous.

Included in this haul will be (swatches will be at the end of post):

• Dreaming Swan Value Kit
• Mini Pouch
• Dear My Blooming Lips - Talk OR225
• Eye and Cheek in #02 Pointe Coral
• Dreaming Swan Shine Volumer #03 Twinkling Tutu
• Dreaming Swan Veiling Pact
• Dreaming Swan Veiling Pact Brush

First on the menu is the Value Kit which contains two makeup products from the collection and the mini pouch.

The floral pattern is very basic lining for cute Korean storage pouches/bags.

The pouch is about 10cm high and ~12cm wide, it has a mini tray fit into it so it becomes a two layer container. It's a nice pastel pink and the tutu on the top is very cute, it's a very cute Etude House-like design. Inside the pouch is a floral design and the mini tray of the same pattern.

I didn't take a photo of the lipstick by itself since the inner tube and bullet is basically the same as the original other than the extra pattern.

On top of the tray, you'll find the Dear My Blooming Lips - Talk lipstick in OR225, now sold out on the site if you wanted to buy separately or in other colours. It's in a mint coloured packaging. The difference between this version other than the outer box is that the tube is a matte texture rather than the glossy smooth of the originals. The matte tube gives it a more soft, gentle feminine feel. The bow is a different colour and the twist up part also has decals of pink toe-shoes around it. The colour of the lipstick is supposed to be coral but I found that it has a strong tinge of pink to it as well. The texture is creamy but it smoothes out with a soft gradient effect, the colour is still very pretty.

The bottom has the Eye&Cheek tin in #02 Pointe Coral, also sold out separately. The puff is designed similarly with the tulle to replicate a tutu. The tutu is not very functional and gets in the way but hey, it's cute. The colour of the product is extremely light and not very pigmented. It also has a shimmer base. I wish it had more colour payoff but I guess it could work as a slight highlighter. It's such a pity though since the texture was so soft and velvety. The brighter colours probably look nicer.

The Veiling Pact was the product I was most interested in by the way it was advertised. I also needed a setting type of powder so I thought I would try it out, I wasn't too interested in the Volumer at the time.

I eventually grabbed a Shine Volumer, which seems to be pretty popular since they're sold out on the site now. I bought #03 Twinkling Tutu, which is the pink beige colour while #01 is the white and #02 is beige. The Shine Volumer is supposed to be a cream shimmer product which you can use for your eyes or even as a highlighter. The tube packaging is just like a lipgloss package down to the applicator, only difference is the toe-shoe and ribbon pattern on the end. It is very creamy and a little goes a long, long, long shimmery way. It is amazingly sparkly. I'm going to have to be very careful applying this.

The main item of the collection (I guess) is this Veiling Pact, surprisingly still in stock. From the product description, it seems like it's some kind of setting powder with a light coverage and SPF so I wanted to get it. The compact case is also a matte texture, I love matte packaging. The compact is about the same size as the cushions but slimmer.

The puff design looks very simple and cute with the little bow, I like this more than the tulle puff of the Eye&Cheek product. Under the puff holder is the cake which also has the collection logo pressed into it. The powder is very soft and smooth, but I don't really notice much brightening or coverage. It feels like a transparent powder but it might be different on top of makeup so don't hold me to that. It also has this really slight cosmetic perfume smell.

Last but not least, I also got the Veil Pact Brush, which is the other main item of this collection. It is also a very popular product since launching so I've heard, also sold out on the site now.

I was mainly attracted by the pink bristles but after receiving it, I'm more in love because it is so soft and the handle is a soft pastel matte pink. The brush tutu is cute as well as functional, keeping the bristles in place when the brush is stored. The handle is a good size as well if you want it to be portable and comfortable.

Swatch Photo. Can barely see the Eye&Cheek colour. Each extra swipe is using my finger after the direct application.

Overall, I think this collection was gorgeously packaged and most of the items were really well done. I was only really disappointed in the Eye&Cheek product as the pigmentation was way off expectations or the advertised swatches. It's a shame I didn't get any of the other colours, they probably had more pigmentation.

Did any of the products catch your eyes? I'd really like to know if you guys bought the other colours of the items in the collection~

I've been slacking on blogging ever since I started watching "The Empress of China" (武媚娘傳奇) this weekend. The costumes, make-up, and Fan Bingbing are absolutely stunningly beautiful. I don't know how historically accurate it is but, I'm still enjoying it enough to continue watching it. I mentioned that I was expecting my Innisfree haul in the previous haul post, I actually received this last Friday, the day after I finished writing that post. I didn't want to have so many haul posts up consecutively so I didn't write this until I finished the Lush review.

If you've read my first Innisfree haul post, then you would know that I was disappointed in their shipment packing and lack of new/specific products. Please consider this post as also an update of that post regarding my feelings about the whole thing. If you just want to see the haul items, keep scrolling until you see photos.

Normally, I don't order Innisfree products directly from the official site simply due to the fact that their catalogue isn't very often updated with newer products or the specific products that I'm looking for. I decided to order from the official site this time to try out their new Pantos shipping option but also because I was running out of product for my usual routines.

Pantos shipping is slightly slower than EMS but also proved to be extremely quick. I placed my order on March 1st, the order processed and shipped on March 3rd, then arrived at my door on March 6th. The package arrived within the 4~8 day estimate without a hitch and in excellent condition. The fact that they're doing free shipping for orders over 70USD right now is actually great considering that it's basically as good as EMS, I do recommend taking advantage of this event. Sometimes EMS cost less than Pantos though so it is solely up to you to choose.

Someone asked me this in my previous Innisfree post so I'll address it here too. My very first package  (100USD) sent through Standard shipping was labelled as Merchandise, however, I was not charged with any extra customs fees or taxes. This time, my package (180USD) sent through Pantos was labelled as Gift, also not charged with any extra fees. I'm not sure what the requirement is for an order to be labelled Merch or Gift, or whether they changed their shipment labelling sometime between the times I've ordered.

In terms of shipment packaging, not much has changed. I still avoided purchasing anything that may seem more fragile. The products are fitted into the box as if playing a game of tetris on a bed a packaging paper and also covered with packaging paper to make everything more fitted thus more contained. Having everything contained like that reduces movement around the box and thus reducing impact and possible damage. It's safe but it still depends how well your postal officers handle your package sometimes.

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This is actually one of my bigger hauls price-wise. The Canadian dollar is so low that shopping is really painful but I can't stop. Spring is coming up so there will be really pretty spring collections and colours soon... But this haul is mainly repurchases this time. I just made another Innisfree purchase for some shadows and small things.

First is my Ampoule Intense Cushion set that comes with a new cushion, 2 refills, and also a puff. Unfortunately, the refills do not include a new puff so you actually have to purchase new puffs if you don't maintain your original one well. Nothing new about this, I still really like this cushion as if stays hydrated and gives a natural enough glow for daily use. I also got another Mineral Moisture Fitting Base as it really helped keep my make-up and skin moist through the day. I might have to skip out on the base when warmer or wetter weather comes around.

Since the creammellow lipstick is still not on the global website, I decided to try out the color glow line instead. The creammellow line of lipsticks are my absolute favourites, I'm not sure why Innisfree hasn't put them up on their site yet. I got some more pink based lipsticks this time. Number 11 Pink Cranberry is almost a magenta-like colour and 03 Autumn Rose is a beige-rose colour. The color glow line has a more flat herbal smell while the creammellow line has a sweeter smell. I'm not sure if I like #11 as much now that I've swatched it but it might be fitting for warmer weather.

I've been using the Orchid Enriched Cream for a while now and I'm finally at the end of the jar. I've liked it enough that I decided to repurchase it. It seems that Innisfree has renewed the formula for the cream so I'll have to see how the new formula works for me. Luckily for me, they still had the anniversary set so I grabbed it. The set comes with the 50ml cream, 20ml of the Orchid Intense Cream and the 35ml hand cream with SPF15 PA+. I actually lost my other hand cream so I'm glad this comes with one too.

Lastly, are the Whitening Pore Synergy Serum and the Perfect 9 Repair Eye Cream that I got for my mom. She was previously using some of the oriental products from thefaceshop but I decided to get her some new stuff so she can see what brands she likes better. The packaging for the Whitening Pore serum is really nice and sturdy. The pump is metal and the bottle is very hand friendly. I can't really say much about these two since I didn't open them to smell or even try them.

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There hasn't been anything I particularly want to review lately. I'll write one up later for Etude House's Color in Liquid Lips since I do have some things to say about it and for my Play 101 Pencils collection as well. I have a couple more hauls that are going to come in later this month but work life is going to begin again so I might not have the time to write as frequently (not that I write frequently now) and also March break coming up means I have to do family things. I also might get caught up in my drama again but I'll urge myself to write as well.

Every month from the 1st to the 5th, Etude House has their Princess Days events. The monthly Free Shipping (with $50USD purchase) is one of those events that I take advantage of most. Most of my Etude House hauls happen at around the same time because I always order at around the same time, however, this haul came a bit later than usual possibly affected by the surrounding weather that we've been experiencing on top of the lunar holidays. Nonetheless, I was really happy when my haul arrived yesterday!

(L)PK006 (R)OR201

The stars of the haul are definitely the Color in Liquid Lips lipglosses that I was excited to try out. There was also a launching event where you for a free Lip Gel mask with every Liquid Lips purchased, so I got two of those as well (not pictured above). I bought OR201 and PK006 as they looked like they'd be the most natural and cute for gradient lips respectively. The packaging is adorable and pink as usual, though knowing me, I'll probably go and buy the Innisfree version of this later on as well for the simpler packaging. I feel like there was also another brand that came out with a gloss with similar packaging but I don't remember it at the moment, if you know please let me know in the comments!

Etude House had discounts on eye make-up products in February so I decided to grab more Play pencils. I can't seem to have enough of those. I finally got my hands on #49, as it was out of stock the last time I went on a pencil haul. I also bought #11, #12, #21, and #24, but I somehow forgot why I wanted to get the red colours since it took so long to get here. Was it for more burgundy eye make-up or was I going to try them as lip products. I think I wanted to try #11 as a blush.

Being a person with sparse eyebrows I also tucked the Perfect Eyebrow Kit into my purchase. I've mostly used auto-pencils for my eyebrows these days and never really thought about going back but I thought it'd be nice to try powders out again for softer looking brows. The kit comes with brushes but they kept rattling in the palette that I had to take them out.

And lastly, I got some nail stuff. I ran out of my top coat recently, or rather, it dried up a bit and made it too troublesome to use so I got a new one. I guess gel top coats can't be thinned or something... Either way, I was really attracted to the shimmer coat (S #2) as it has these very fine pink shimmers to make your manicure just a little more glamorous.

I have an Innisfree haul that should be coming in soon but I think other than two lipsticks the haul is mainly my refills and stuff for my mom. Sorry I didn't swatch anything for this haul post, I had to run out of the house after I got the package so I didn't have the time to do swatches. I should get back to working on that review I said I was going to post.

Edit1: Forgot to format and put the colour code for the nail polish. That's how rushed this post was, orz

Guess who's been going to bed in the dead of night and waking in the middle of the day? (Hint: It's me.) My sleep schedule has been all turned around since February started. I'm staying up until 4am and waking up past noon. I mean, I've always been a non-scheduled sleeper so I guess it isn't too weird to me. However, having pulled a couple of all-nighters starting at an early age and just not sleeping well overall has earned me some pretty nice dark circles under my poor tired eyes.

I have never actually been one to take care of my eyes very well, up until last year or so. I didn't think I would need to be very wary about my eyes back then since I just barely stepped into my twenties. Working in cosmetics really teaches you a lot about self-care, especially Korean cosmetics. I've started using eye creams only last year but I honestly haven't found one that I particularly love.

Almost the only English you will see on the box.

The product review today is the Innisfree Eco Science White C Double Eye Circle Cream, that is certainly a mouthful to say. I got this in a haul I posted about not too long ago here, along with the sleeping mask in the same line. While the rest of the White C line is available on the Innisfree website, this eye cream alone doesn't seem to be listed. The text of the box itself is 95% Korean which is why it took me a while to write this review.

Much Korean, many confusion.

This eye cream's alluring point is that it contains a day and night cream. The [day] cream "corrects dull eyes to be bright and protects eyes against UV rays during day time" with SPF35 PA++, meanwhile the [night] cream "improves dull eye circle and takes care of fine wrinkles". According to the descriptions for the product, it contains Jeju organic tangerine and green tea which in turn gives double the whitening effect.

As many Innisfree products, this one has has a 5 Free System (Paraben free, animal ingredient free, mineral oil free, artificial fragrance free, and imidazolidinyl urea free). But, speaking of ingredients, there doesn't seem to be a full ingredients list on the box. I tried to use the translator on every side of the box but it only gives me a few ingredients.

Ingredients as indicated on the box:
Day Cream: Ethylhexyl methoxycinnamate, titanium dioxide, bemotrizinol**, arbutin, polyacrylate-13, phenoxyethanol, ascorbyl glucoside.
Night Cream: Arbutin, polyacrylate-13, phenoxyethanol, adenosine, ascorbyl glucoside
**비스에헥실옥시체놀메톡시페닐트리아진 bis-ethylhexyloxyphenol methoxyphenyl triazine
(This ingredient gave me hell to translate.)

I looked around some more to see if there was a full list of ingredients somewhere, there usually is after all. You can find more information on CosDNA; click here for [day] and click here for [night]. I am not sure, however, how accurate this is but CosDNA is pretty trustworthy for the most part. More trustworthy than Google Translate, surely.

As of now, I've completely finished the [night] side of this eye cream. The reason is very simple, it's simply because I don't go out everyday. With the [day] cream having SPF, I find it unnecessary to apply unless leaving the house so I use the night cream probably twice as much. In the month that I've used it, I saw a slight reduction in my dark circles. The difference is very small but still noticeable. I suppose if I used it even more that it would slowly, but surely, fade the dark circles even more but with only 10ml for each side, you'll most likely have to repurchase a few times. In terms of the day cream, I mainly use that one like sunscreen for my eye area. It definitely does a bit of brightening from the shimmery white cast that it has. Neither side has done much or anything at all for wrinkles, honestly.

Dual pump, tubes are opaque so you can't see remaining product.

This product comes in a pump container which is always welcomed for it being more hygienic. I had a small problem with the pump though because it seems to pump a bit too much sometimes and it is a little harder to control the amount that comes out. For me, I had to fiddle with how much to push down to get the right amount and usually half a pump is just about enough. The pump is also not very comfortable to use and the spout is slightly problematic, personally. I think I just have a personal grudge against the design of this pump because objectively it isn't that big of a problem.

That was half a pump of [day] and the last bit of [night]. You can see the shimmer in [day].

Here's the part that explains why I have a small problem with the amount that pumps out with each pump. The consistency of both these creams are very light, almost watery when applying to the skin. This kind of consistency is really good for an eye cream because you don't want something too thick and heavy in the eye area. However, this consistency makes it difficult to know how much product you actually need when you first start using it. One full pump of product gives you more than enough for both eyes, and if you're using the day cream, it gives you a heavier white cast/shimmer. This will probably vary among person to person, but I would suggest trying half pump before going for the full pump just in case.

Both the day and night cream have a tangerine peel smell, it's a slightly herbal scent. It's hard to explain what it smells like but it's similar to a bitter citrus scent. It isn't as bad as the dried peels that you might have come across in a chinese restaurant or supermarket, but it has a very good semblance to it. The smell fades super quick and isn't very noticeable unless you are purposefully trying to smell it.

Pros:
- Gently brightens and whitens dark circles
- Very lightweight texture
- Provides UV protection for sensitive eye area
- Hygienic pump
- Convenient 2-in-1 product (day & night)

Cons:
- The day cream is shimmery?
- Herbal smell might be weird?
- Small amount of product

Overall, it is a good product and I was pretty satisfied with the results. I'm not sure about repurchasing right now since I don't really think I've made good use of the day cream. I'm mainly an indoor person so I might not even have much use for the sun protection to justify a repurchase for a 2-in-1 product. I might actually switch over to the White Tone Up version instead later on since it has the same function.

Just a short* haul post since I got some things in the mail today. This time around, I bought mostly eye products including; eye cream, eye shadow, pencils, and remover. Trying to increase my eye product collection.

First off, the haul from Etude House! This time around, I got two more Play 101 Pencils (#50, #53 [holiday edition]), the Darling (Snail Healing) Cream, Moistfull Super Collagen Eye Concentrate, Lip&Eye Remover, and their My Beauty Tool Eye-Blending Brush (#311).

I'm a little disappointed because Etude House just recently started their Play 101 Pencils event in which you can get a free tin case with your purchase of  4 or more Play 101 Pencils. I already bought 7 of them, the colours tend to be more on the natural side so far so if I do plan on getting more I would have to get the more bright and vibrant colours or duplicates (even though I haven't even finished mine). I still wish they just came out with a set of them out right because I can't resist so I might end up having all of them in the end (except for the holiday special ones which I found were too glittery).

Snail has been all the rage with Korean Skincare for a while, good for regenerating skin tissue and fading scars or the like. I've heard decent things about the Etude House Darling Cream so I thought it'd be worth a try considering the price. I believe this is a new version because it now contains phenoxethanol which the previous version supposedly did not. It seems the new version does have a slight change in other ingredients as well according to the ingredients list on the site. (For reference: Old Version vs. New Version)

Nothing really to note about the other products that I got. Everything else was bought as back up really, just in case I run out of anything. Eye products tend to run out the quickest for me.

Next up is my small haul from Koreadepart, an online Korean department store. I actually shop quite often on their site because they carry many different brands and update rather quickly when new products come out. I didn't get too much this time and just a few things that were on sale and I wanted to try out; Nature Republic Real Nature Rose Ampoule, TheFaceShop Overgirl Edge Stick Eyes (PK101), and the too cool for school Dinoplatz Concealer. Every order gets a variety of samples from a good mix of brands as well, which is always a bonus. Shipping fees do tend to be a little bit more on the high side so sometimes it feels like it just fills in for the discounts you get.

While there are plenty of TheFaceShop stores in Toronto, I opted to buy the product online simply because many of the stores did not have stock of the newer products. I believe I've only seen new products at the original location inside Pacific Mall, however, I don't frequent there enough to just go and buy one item. Another pink shimmer eye product to my collection.

I also got my very first too cool for school product this time! I originally ordered the UFO Multi-Box as well but it was no longer in stock (now listed as discontinued) so I had to get it refunded which was disappointing. I've always really liked their packaging style so it'll be interesting to try some of their products!

The Rose Ampoule isn't my first Nature Republic product, my first was the world renown Aloe Vera Soothing Gel which was just fine. I never found it too special or amazing, it does what it says but the texture it leaves is sometimes not to my liking. I'm excited to try the ampoule though, ampoules are supposed to be the most concentrated product so it should have more results. The smell of the ampoule is definitely the smell of roses and the texture is a lot less watery than I expected.

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*This post became nothing of "short". I should start working on my January Empties post soon.

Since Innisfree just recently launched their new lucky bag events (details at their site or at the bottom of this post), I thought it'd be the perfect time to finally write my review for their famous Green Tea Seed Serum set. However, because it's been reviewed by basically every blogger in existence, I'll just do a brief overview of my thoughts on it.

I actually got this set when Innisfree first opened their online shopping site; Innisfree World. It was very widely raved about in the k-beauty world so I wanted to try it out. I used this almost every day since October, but I have changed to only using it in the mornings from about December and onwards. The Balancing Skin and Lotion, however, I have only used  for a month when I got it.

When I first started using the serum, I was finishing up another essence from thefaceshop which I believe was the Calming Seed SOS Care Essence (a repurchase). My skin is slightly sensitive so I try to choose lines that are more calming and not too heavy in texture or scent. While the Green Tea Seed Serum does seem to have a pretty strong scent, it smelled very subtle. It has a sweet leafy scent to it. I used this on top of my regular skincare routine at first to allow my skin to familiarize with it and see if I'd have any reaction to it. Happily, it seems that my skin was fine with it. I phased out my other essence and only used the serum after about a week, my skin continued to feel very hydrated and calm. 

The serum pumps out not really the translucent white colour but rather a translucent yellow-brown colour. I've read some other post that said their bottle was more white but there are also those whose serum comes out the same colour as I've encountered. I'm sure both are fine and it depends on the batch that you get your bottle from. In the bottle, it looks pretty white but the colour is definitely different pumped out.

5-Free System: Free of paraben, artificial colour, mineral oil, animal by-products, and imidazolidinyl urea.

In terms of overall results of using this serum, I'd say my face feels generally more hydrated and it did quickly reduce my problematic dry areas. I can't say that my face is noticeably more clear or anything like that but it does feel more balanced in terms of hydration. Hydration is the first step to clear skin so I do really like the serum itself. At the moment, even though I've almost used it up, I'm still deciding on whether I want to repurchase it. I might actually go and try Soy Essence [light] instead since they are both something you use before a toner. I will miss the pump bottle of this GTS Serum though.

As for the Skin and Lotion that the set came with, I would say it's more recommended for summer use rather than autumn/winter. They definitely do some sebum and oil control thus being not enough for me to use during the colder more dry season that I bought them in. 

Pros:

- Light texture absorbs quickly

- Hydrating for Combo/Dry skin

- Packaging makes it easy to hold and pump out

Cons:

- Might be more suitable for Summer or more humid climates

- Slightly too light for Dry skin

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If you are interested in Innisfree's Green Tea line, they are currently having an event for their 15th Anniversary with lucky bags! There's one for the Green Tea line and also one for the Volcanic Scoria line. Both of them seem to be more for Combo/Oily skin especially in this season, but if you are interested, now's a good time to check out a good amount of their bestselling items!

The past week has been busy, tying up knots to previous obligations and making decisions to close another chapter of my life. Still getting things sorted but 2015 should be going with a nice start. January is already half over, hopefully everyone is doing great so far!

As a girl with way too many lip products and only one pair of lips, I've been trying to cut down on buying lipsticks. It proves difficult every year to finish the lipsticks that I already have. However, as you can see from the post title, I got another one.

Today, I'll be talking about TheFaceShop's Artist Touch Lipstick-Creamy Matte #BR801. It is one of the more nude colours compared to a lot of their other bright colours. To be honest, I find that thefaceshop doesn't have enough colour variety when it comes to their lipsticks. A lot of them tend to be on the lighter side so it's hard to get a good deep burgundy or even a deep rouge. Either way, I picked up this corally nude colour instead. As the package indicates, it's a matte lipstick with a creamy texture. Packaging-wise, it's very similar to MAC's lipsticks.

Product description and ingredient list.

I've liked many of their Moisture and Glossy lipsticks so I decided to give the Creamy Matte one a try as well. I can't say I'm totally into this one though. The Moisture and Glossy lipsticks were more sheer and similar to tint balms in terms of colour and texture, thus their labels. While the pigmentation of the CM lipstick is definitely higher, I'm not sure if I like this one or not.

While applying the lipstick, you can definitely feel the creamy texture, however, once it's on your lips it doesn't feel as creamy anymore. I'm kind of sensitive to the feeling on my lips so I don't like it if I can "feel" the lipstick weighing on my lips. This lipstick starts drying out your lips almost immediately if you didn't prime your lips lip balm beforehand. It also accentuates any kind of dry skin on your lips, which I suppose is very common for matte lipsticks but, after a while my lips got even flakier and drier. I definitely recommend using a heavy lip balm and/or using a lip scrub before using the Creamy Matte lipsticks. 

While the pigmentation of the TheFaceShop lipstick seems very pigmented compared to their other finishes in the same line, the Etude House Dear My Wish line is much more pigmented and creamy. It takes my Etude House lipstick only two (or sometimes even one) strokes to achieve the colour payoff of maybe 3~4 strokes of the TheFaceShop one. Of course, the Etude House lipstick is more orange/pink and not as nudey brown as the TheFaceShop lipstick but at least it's not as drying. I've tried applying my Etude House Jelly Lips Talk lipstick before applying this lipstick and it comes off a bit better but colour payoff obviously isn't as high as just using the lipstick alone. It just felt like the colour wouldn't adhere to my lips on top of the other lipstick.

In terms of durability, it's not too long-lasting. It has no tinting properties so when you drink something or eat something, 75% of the colour comes off. Reapplying every two to three hours will be inevitable for this kind of lipstick.

Overall, I'm really sad about this lipstick because I really liked the colour of it. It's really unfortunate how drying it is on my lips. I'll most likely still use this lipstick because I love the colour but I'll definitely have to be diligent in checking if my lips are looking human if I do. If you would prefer something less drying, the Moisture and the Glossy finishes of the Artist Touch lipsticks aren't bad and they also have similar nude colours with less powdery finish thus not as dry. I personally prefer the Moisture > Glossy > Creamy Matte.

Pros:
- A really nice nude colour
- The colour is true to the swatch mostly

Cons:
- Extremely drying
- Accentuates dry lips
- Not long-lasting

Whoops, I guess I dropped the ball with updating more frequently in 2015. I was going to write a make-up review but I got distracted as usual. Since the city is under some deep freeze today and I got a package yesterday, thought I'd type up a quick haul post. This haul came from kpoptown since I was doing my year end kpop haul for albums and calendars, and they just stocked up on some new products. To be honest, while I love that Innisfree opened up the global site, I wish they implemented a point system and add in new products more frequently to motivate me to keep buying directly from them. That's a whole other story, onto the haul items.

Recently, I got interested in trying some brightening products to lighten some dark spots I've been getting from either the bright store lights or just in general going out a lot more than I have before. While the Tone-Up line is made of berry extract, the White C line is made of Jeju tangerine peels and mint. I mainly chose the White C line over the Tone-Up line this time because I wanted to try the Sleeping Pack. I used the sleeping pack just last night and I suppose my skin did feel smoother since the pack contain shea butter as well as brightening properties, not much for brightening as of yet.

The Double Eye Circle Cream was also a more interesting choice since it comes with both a day/night cream. The day side contains SPF, which is something I've never used for my eye area before. This haul is basically a lot of "trying new things". The day side cream gives a slight white cast that "brightens" the eye area, it's similar to the effect of wearing sun lotion on your face. More in depth review after I use it a bit more.

#39 Cozy Sweater, #40 Girly Ribbon, #44 Leafy Road, #03 Sweet Vanilla, #04 Romance Burgundy

#39 and #40 are more matte/soft while the rest are more shimmer based. I was hoping for #44 to be more brown but it is more burgundy than Cream #04.

I also picked up some eye shadows from Innisfree to try them out. Neutrals and burgundy colours are really popular these days so I got a couple of them for myself. I swatched them on my arm earlier and my favourites are definitely #39, #44, and cream #03 right now. I actually also got a The SAEM Shine Jelly Shadow in #02, which is a gorgeous wine red shimmer colour.

There should be another haul post soon for some new Etude House products. I tried to get my hands on the too cool for school multibox but they were sold out, maybe next time... I really wanted to try it after my Innisfree Ampoule Intense cushion ran out. There was also the HERA cushion that I'm still debating about whether I should buy or not considering my employment situation. Either way, I'll try and finish writing that other make-up post soon!