A friend of mine gifted me with my very first LUSH product last month, and she coincidentally picked out the gift set that I had my eyes on when my sister was picking out a gift for her own friend. The gift set she got me was the Blooming Beautiful gift set which contains the Sakura bath bomb and the Rose Jam Bubbleroon (bubble bar).

This post will be mainly about the bath bomb but I'll also touch upon the bubble bar and do an overview of the gift set in general.

I've never been a customer of Lush just due to the fact I can smell the store a mile away. My nose is somewhat sensitive to strong scents so I've always steered away from the store. Despite that, I have also heard many good things about Lush from friends which made me interested in trying some of their products, just never sure which ones as they have so many.

This gift set came wrapped in a very bright, springtime floral wrapping paper and a cute pink ribbon. The print is very cute and made me wish spring would come sooner, but this is Canada and spring is a myth. I could already smell the scent of the bath products outside the wrapping paper and even now, weeks later, the smell still lingers. With fragrance being third on the ingredients list for the bath bomb, I guess that's to be expected. There are also the manufacture and best before dates on the wrapping paper.

Upon opening the box, it comes with lots of packing peanuts and two pamphlets; one explaining the products in the gift (including directions and ingredients list) and another general Lush pamphlet. Both of these, being in the box the whole time, has completely absorbed the fragrance of the bath bomb. I keep mentioning the scent but it's like 75% of my experience, I can't help it.

I looked up some bath bomb reviews and demos since it was my first time using one I wasn't sure what the whole bath bomb protocol was. Some people recommended cutting them in half, others advised that it was best to use the whole thing at once. I have a pretty standard sized tub, it's not a deep soaker or anything like that. I decided to break my bath bomb into unequal halves to test it out. I have slight regrets about this decision as it proved to be subpar in the creamy bubbles. However, I felt that it still gave you the same soothing effect with a more subtle scent.

The Sakura bath bomb doesn't turn your bath water into any kind of amazing colour, instead it's a milky coloured bath. The coloured bath salts embedded in the bath bomb do shoot out as the bath bomb does its work in the water but doesn't affect the colour of your bath at all, in fact, they disappear quite quickly ready to be soaked into your skin. The scent is a mix of sweet and fresh florals with a hint of citrus. It made my skin feel soft and refreshed afterwards, and the scent lingers subtly for the rest of the day. I'm somewhat glad that I only used half of the bath bomb just because of the strong scent that might've occurred with using the whole thing, yet at the same time I think the overall effect would be better with the full bomb. Overall, I enjoyed it enough.

The Rose Jam Bubbleroon, however, exceeded my expectations. It was a sweet milky candy smell to it, kind of strong but not disagreeable exactly. I cut the bubble bar into four pieces and only used a quarter to try. With only a quarter, it was able to make a very bubbly pastel pink bath! I super duper love it, surprisingly. The bubble bar itself looks to have a bit of shimmer on it but I didn't really notice it in the bath water or on my skin afterwards. Due to the coconut oil and shea butter in the bar, my skin felt super smooth after my bath.

I definitely recommend using an entire bath bomb if you want the full soaking scented experience, half a bath bomb still gives you a satisfying result nonetheless. The bubble bar, on the other hand, can be cut up into smaller pieces and still provide a full bubble experience. However, I do find the bath bomb more convenient as you need to crumble the bubble bar and mix the water to have it fully dissolved. I thoroughly enjoyed the products in this particular gift set, I think my friend made a surprisingly amazing choice.

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

The perfectly aligned February is finally over. Despite it being my birth month, February has never been one of my favourite months. Too many events, the weather is horrid, and just generally a very stressful month. The temperature dipped to extreme lows this month thus making the air even more dry and frigid than before. To be honest, this is pretty common for a Canadian winter so it didn't phase me much.

Due to the extreme cold, I tried to stay home most days catching up on my animanga. I did have some days where I went out to meet up with friends, relatives, and also for lunar new year. My make up and skincare routines stayed mostly the same this month so you may not see as many skincare favourites as last month. It's actually mainly eye make up this month.

Cosmetic Favourites

1) Innisfree Mineral Single Shadow #40 Girly Ribbon

If you've read the haul post with this item in it, you would know that this was not one of my initial favourites. However, after using it more frequently, I've come to like this soft dark neutral colour. It really matched the mood this month. As you will see in the swatch a little bit lower in the post, this colour is not very pigmented and it does fade a bit sometimes. Despite all that, it gave me a very nice mauve base that was a little bit more smokey than natural but still not too exaggerated. It became one of my go-to shades for the rest of winter.

2) Annabelle Eye Shadow #118 Golden Shine

February is the month which Lunar New Year often occurs, and what is auspicious for this event? Definitely, gold. For me and my Chinese relatives, red and gold become the staple colours during those couple of days. The occasion basically called for gold eye shadow. This gold eye shadow isn't sparkly, but it is shimmery. It is also not overly exaggerated but gave my eyes the perfect gold sheen.

3) the Saem Eco Soul Shine Jelly Shadow #02 Sexy Plum

I felt that red eye shadow might have been too much even for a special event so I went for something less bright but still gives some colour to the eyes. This shadow rose well to the occasion to give my eyes a good amount of red and sparkle. It is quite pigmented and is pretty long lasting. It is a "jelly" type shadow thus it feels similar to an ink pad and applies similar to cream shadows but not as cakey. It was really perfect this February.

Swatch for the three above shadows.

4) Nature Republic Real Nature Rose Ampoule

This ampoule was something I received at the end of January, replacing my Innisfree Green Tea Serum. So far I've been pretty impressed with this product, it has been keeping my skin quite hydrated and smooth. I do also notice my skin looking a little bit brighter and the rose scent in the product is very lovely so I would say this is a favourite this month. I haven't had any problems with it in the month that I've been using it other than somewhat disliking the dropper.

5) Lush Rose Jam Bubbleroon

Unfortunately, there won't be a photo of this product since I've gone and kind of cut it up not thinking much about it. You will see a glimpse of it in an upcoming review though so there's that. It basically looks like a large pink whoopie pie (or I think it's supposed to look like a macaron). Being a first time user of Lush products, I was pleasantly surprised by this bubbleroon (bubble bar). I don't want to say too much about it since I'm also talking about it in the next review so I'll just say this; it made my skin feel so smooth and it smelled so nice. Having a pink bath is also dream come true.

Media Favourites

1. Kang Seung Yoon - 맘도둑 (Stealer)


This was my February jam. I had this on repeat for a while because of, well, everything about this song. I'm still not quite over it, it's such a lovely, soothing song. Somewhat different from his new sophisticated WINNER image, Kang Seungyoon is super adorable in his solo videos. Although I spent my Valentine's day celebrating anything but, this song gives you the sweet lovey dovey feeling that makes you feel bubbly. If ever you need a sweet little pick me up song, I'd definitely recommend this one. (His Wild and Young single is also really good, more upbeat rock-pop type music. It Rains, his other single, is a more low tempo, relaxing song if you're more into that. Seungyoon's voice is just so refreshing to listen to.)

2. 京騒戯画 (Kyousougiga)


As I wrote in the intro, I finally had the time to go through my unfinished animanga list. Kyousogiga was one of the shows I anticipated since they released the very first ONA in 2011. At first everyone thought it was going to be a one over but I guess it attracted enough attention to garner more development. I was originally attracted to the fact that it was heavily inspired by Alice in Wonderland and by the colourful animation. As the story became more developed in the 2012 five episode back-story ONA, I got more and more interested in the characters and their stories. Finally, with the ten full episodes in 2013, the story was deliciously complete.

This show is a little hard to summarize and describe depending on which part of the series you are watching. There are themes that I think could be openly interpreted but I also feel that this was ultimately a story about some very deep messages. Definitely, you cannot judge this series by the colourful and cute animations. The story of the original ONA is not what it seems. There are stories later of love, selfishness, discovery, and other existential themes. It's definitely something one needs to experience oneself, I cannot recommend this enough. The finale is also quite satisfying, it closes the story quite well which is always an important thing for a good show. More details, here.

3. 暗殺教室 (Assassination Classroom)

This was something I randomly picked up, I saw it on the front page since it was newly updated and thought I'd give it a try. To be honest, I thought I would drop it after the first couple of chapters. I was sorely mistaken. This is an absolute gem despite the premise sounding utterly ridiculous. While usually not a fan of these shounen type manga, I actually got sucked right into it. It does have the typical "teacher helping and inspiring students to excel in life" kind of story, what keeps me going is the big mystery of Korosensei. While the story moves slowly, it gives itself a kind of deadline as well. Although I suspect that "deadline" may become the true climax of the story. For a story to keep my attention as well as this one is doing takes quite some power. It also recently got an anime adaptation, so I started watching that too. The show itself is very colourful and fun so far. If you're interested in a not very spoilery summary, click here.

4. Adult Wednesday Addams (YouTube Series)


If you grew up like I did, then you must've watched The Addams Family some time in your childhood. My family and I loved that show, although strange they let me watch it as a child with all the macabre themes subtly inserted in that show. I remember mainly watching The New Addams Family since it was the one airing on TV at the time and the 1991 movie. As if it were #tbt, I find this little gem while wandering through the internet. It's so nice to see an adaptation of a grown-up Wednesday, it's like we've grown up together. I'm not throwing this up here for nostalgia (though a big part of it) but this mini-series also throws you some modern issues and how to deal with it Wednesday's way. Nonetheless, I look forward to continue watching this mini-series as it is witty and just plain good to watch.

---

How was your February? Hopefully the cold and snow didn't get you too good, it was a frosty February. I tried to keep it short, I noticed that I tend to write too much when I'm not even trying to write a review. Let's keep marching on this March!

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.

Happy Valentine's Day everybody! I certainly haven't been writing a lot this past week, sorry. February is always kind of hectic in our family because of birthdays, taxes, and Chinese New Year. Speaking of birthdays, I recently got myself an iMac so I've been trying to get used to all the functions and different shortcuts, as well as transferring all the files from my old laptop. Since I have no plans for Valentaine's Day anyway (sobs), I finally have time to write!

After finally having time in my life again, I met up with some friends for a nice get-together dinner. One of my friends' mom had just come back from Hong Kong with an extensive mask haul apparently. She gifted us all each a different type of Annie's Way sheet mask, a Taiwanese mask brand that is relatively popular in HK. Having at this point, never trying masks other than korean masks, I was really delighted to be able to try this brand.

For those of you who are not familiar with Annie's Way, they are a Taiwanese Mask brand established in 2009 exclusively for masks of all types. The sheet material is 100% imported from Japan and all of their products go through extensive quality control to give consumers the safest and best products. Other than sheet masks, they also have jelly masks, soaps, and now even skincare products. More information can be found on their website; here.

Starting off, I just want to say that the packaging is really nice. It's very minimal and looks very elegant. The colour of the packaging is dependent on the function of the masks. The pink ones are generally for sensitive skin.

Function: Chamomile keeps skin supple and smooth. Infusing over sensitive and dry skin with moisture to regain your skin’s healthy glow.

I chose the chamomile one out of the other ones that she brought since my skin wasn't feeling too great at the time (as mentioned in a previous post). Surprisingly though, most of us in the group of friends do have relatively sensitive skin to begin with. Being all from the same line of work at some point, we all looked at the ingredients list almost immediately after receiving these. I was very surprised and delighted to see the extremely short ingredients list. With only five ingredients, it seemed almost too good to be true. There was no mineral oil, alcohol, paraben, or any other harmful ingredients in the list. This is however only the MAIN ingredients and not the full list.

Full list of ingredients: Dist water.Carbopol 980.Butylene Glycol.Chamomile Extract.Soy Extract.Vitamin E.Allantoin.Dipotassium Glycyrrhizinate.D-panthenolB5.Methylisothiazolinone.Iodopropynyl Butylcarbamate.

You can find the full list of ingredients on the official website listings for each product. While the full list is not too much longer, it is kind of misleading to only have the main ingredients on the packaging. The only ingredients that I found to be somewhat questionable are the Methylisothiazolinone (MIT) and Iodopropynyl Butylcarbamate (IPBC). They are both relatively strong preservatives of which have somewhat harmful properties if one has constant or over exposure to.

There isn't any artificial fragrances and the smell was very very subtle. It was a very calming floral scent that wasn't over powering. The mask was sufficiently soaked and had a plastic sheet to make it easier to open up I assume. The plastic sheet actually confused me but it kept the cloth of the sheet from sticking to each other.

I had only a small problem with the fitting of the mask. The cutouts for the eyes and the lips were a little on the smaller side. The cutting for the eyes were a little small and closer together than many of the ones I've tried before, the mask would touch the outer corner of my eyes. The philtrum area was too thick and it actually covered my upper lip as well. Otherwise, I think the fitting is okay.

In terms of results, my skin definitely felt more hydrated and soft. It slightly reduced the redness of my skin but not to the extent that it was fully gone. There was no further reaction so it is definitely good for sensitive skin. It basically does what it is supposed to, I don't expect masks to go beyond their descriptions to impress me. Overall, it is a satisfying mask. I didn't expect too much and it gave me exactly what was promised.

Pros:
- Subtle floral smell
- Hydrating, moisturizing
- Attractive Packaging

Cons:
- Questionable preservatives
- Small fitting

I hope everyone has a wonderful Valentine's Day whether you have a companion or not. I'll send you my love and chocolates all the same. Feel free to follow me on bloglovin now if you like my posts, it'll probably make it easier to follow!

Follow my blog with Bloglovin

You can visit the site at: TheFaceShop America

Although not announced on any social media sites so far, it seems that TheFaceShop already has their online site for Canadian customers up and running! The site design is very simple and looks very clean, which matches their brand image.

The product info page includes the product description, application/precautions, ingredients list, and further information about the product such as features and more in depth benefits of the product.

So far, they only carry their more popular and basic skincare lines so you won't be finding any make-up or anti-aging lines online quite yet. If you're only looking for anything from the Green Tea line to the Mango Seed line, they're now available to purchase in the comfort of your own home. They also have some of their best selling products such as the Smile Foot Masks, Hand Masks, Clean Face Clear Away Spot, and peeling gels in stock for those who can never find them in stores.

They are also hosting a B2G1Free mask promotion on the very popular Real Nature Masks. Do take note though that these masks contain alcohol and paraben. They also have Free Shipping for orders over $60. The sales on the site and the sales in the offline stores might be slightly different depending on location but that is not certain yet it seems.

If you don't have TheFaceShop near your home or if the closest store is always out of stock on your much needed product, you can now order products online and have them shipped to you. You may want to take note though that,

THEFACESHOP does not under any circumstances guarantee that products offered on the Site are available in inventory. If THEFACESHOP is not able to deliver any of the items you order because they are out of stock, we will refund the amount charged to your credit or debit card for these products and send you a refund confirmation by email. (See here.)

It is still very possible that you won't be able to receive your ordered item if it goes out of stock as your order is processing. Which is something I have encountered way too many times...

Hopefully they will add more into the store later on, perhaps they will have a more updated product line compared to their offline stores? I'm really hoping for it.

With a blink of an eye, January is already over and we're already into the second month of 2015. January has been somewhat of a rough month for me with dealing with post-holiday season issues and overall work issues. All that aside though, I've been slowly making changes in my life to make sure my health and happiness come first so that the stress monster can't eat me alive.

In terms of my skin condition during January, I wouldn't say that it was at its best. I got a terrible reaction from trying something once and I'm still recovering from the awful breakout I got from it. It was really disappointing because my skin was actually getting somewhat better before that happened.

Either way, on to the first favourites of the year! Since this is the very first favourites post on my blog, I'm going to be trying out a couple of formats throughout these, I hope you guys will bare with me. Also, sorry for all the different lighting in my photos, my phone adjusted to the product colours as well.

Cosmetic Favourites

1) Innisfree Ampoule Intense Cushion
I bought this right before the harsh winter season set in because I really enjoyed using the Etude House Precious Mineral Any Cushion. At the time, the Etude Cushion was doing fine for me but I could feel the weather starting to dry out my skin a lot more so I wanted to try something that was more moisturizing. Especially since the lighting at work was extremely bright and harsh, I needed something with a lot more hydrating properties than the one I had.

At first, I debated on whether I should get the Innisfree Water Glow or the Long Stay cushion as those were the ones that were really popular. But then, as if they heard my pleas, they came out with the new winter cushion we know now as the Ampoule Intense Cushion. I wasn't sure about getting it because I have combination skin and I thought maybe the WG version would be enough but thankfully I got the AI version instead at the end.

Since I have received this cushion in the mail, I used it all the time. I loved the light texture, the scent seems herbal, and it definitely keeps my skin feeling moist even through the harshest and coldest winds. The colour applies lighter than most but settles pretty close to my skin colour, and the coverage is light/medium. Despite that, it did not accentuate or create any flakiness that I might have had and the staying power is not bad. This is definitely a cushion that I am going to purchase a refill for!

2) Innisfree Eco Science White-C Sleeping Pack
This was a product that I got in a haul... recently? I mentioned that it contained tangerine peels, mint, and shea butter as the main ingredients. This pack makes my skin feel really nice, and because of the mint, it also has a cooling effect. The cooling effect is really nice for winter since we always have the heat on overnight. The shea butter keeps my skin moist and soft as well. In terms of brightening, I don't notice too much of it as of yet, but it feels really nice for winter.

3) Etude House skin malgem Deep Moist Toner
I have been using this toner for some time now and only just recently finished one bottle. While it took me so long to use this toner, I must say that I really like this toner. It is a hypoallergenic product and it has a very subtle floral scent to it that is very relaxing. It's a more watery-gel type toner thus a lot more moisturizing toner compared to the others in the same line (such as the fresh, smoother, moist, etc). I started using this around the middle of summer, only at night since I also had the mist toner from TFS (read here).

It's been a toner that's been serving me well as a first step for moisturizing and just as a good base for trying new things. This is actually an overall favourite, it keeps my skin feeling mostly stable throughout the seasons and because it doesn't react to my skin, it's good to have so my skin doesn't feel too overworked from using too many new things at once. Since the summers here are still really dry, I can actually use this through all seasons and not have too many problems.

4) TheFaceShop Calming Seed Cream
As I said at the beginning, my skin started having a reaction from something I actually did at work. From recommendations from my friends, apparently the Calming Seed Cream from TheFaceShop is really good for, well, calming down the skin from reactions or allergies. I got a couple of samples to try it out for a couple of days.

It certainly did calm down my skin quite a bit. The bumps and redness would decrease the next day so it definitely isn't bad. The cream texture is very smooth and applies really coolly onto the skin even on top of your usual skincare. So, I'm adding this to my favourites for the month because it progressively helped my reaction calm down quite well. In terms of moisturizing or anything else, I can't say there was much else.

5) Revlon Nail Enamel #933 Chameleon
You guys may not know but I love nail polishes. I don't know if I'll ever do a full review on one though so for now you'll only see them in the favourites posts. This colour, at first I wasn't sure about but, I really loved it for the month. The gold was just festive enough for the new year but not so bright gold that it would be too much. Overall, Revlon nail polishes are really nice in terms of finish and application. I much prefer flat brushes compared to the round brush that Revlon has for their polishes, but the colour and pigmentation I can't complain too much.

Media Favourites

1) Jonghyun - 데자-부 (Déjà-Boo) (feat. Zion.T)


Let me just say that, I have been waiting for a Jonghyun solo ever since SM started pushing out solo projects like Henry's. With Jonghyun writing and composing songs from the beginning and more frequently as we hit the Misconceptions/Everybody era, this was going to be inevitable. His entire album is really his style, I really love it because it's his. He made it his. I definitely like Deja-Boo and Love Belt a bit better than Crazy (Guilty Pleasure) but this entire album is just so lovely. I knew I would like his album. It was opposite when Taemin came out with Ace. I wasn't sure what to think about it at first and Danger wasn't really my style (it's just really catchy though) but I came to like the rest of his album a lot. So, it goes to say, I'm really proud of them and SHINee in general for their music!

2) Lizzy - 쉬운 여자 아니에요 (Not an Easy Girl)


I'm not a big fan of After School to be completely honest, in terms of music style. I followed Orange Caramel more because I liked the more upbeat and fun title songs. When Lizzy came out with her solo, I wasn't anticipating too much, especially with the trot genre. However, I enjoyed it immensely and can't stop playing this song. The video is also really well done with the editing and her make-up.

3) ユリ熊嵐 (Yurikuma Arashi)


Last on the list is Yurikuma Arashi, an anime directed by the infamous Ikuhara Kunihiko (better known for the older Sailor Moon anime, Revolutionary Girl Utena, and the more recent Mawaru Penguindrum). Like many other Ikuhara anime, Yurikuma has a lot of symbolism and hidden themes behind the relatively cute or frilly appearance. I've been excited about this show since the teaser Penguinbear website that came up shortly after Peguindrum ended and it hasn't disappointed in the four episodes out so far.

How have you guys spent the first month into a new year?