Category: Makeup (Page 1 of 10)

MISSHA M CREAM TENSION PACT REVIEW

October 30, 2015 / The Beauty Wolf

You’ve got a drawer full of bb creams, you’ve got a little army of bb cushions, you might even have the odd metal cushion freedom fighter running around your makeup stash, but do you have a tension pact?

The Missha M Cream Tension Pact was something that immediately caught my eye while perusing one of my favourite shops, W2Beauty. I might have a slew of holy grails already, but for your sakes and mine, I am always on the hunt for the newest, best, and brightest products out there. Besides, you can never have too many paths to perfection!

What’s the difference between this Tension Pact and a traditional bb cushion? Unlike the BB cushions spongey centre, the Tension Pact has a fine, flexible, mesh screen; called a “Tension Net” in the middle of the pact.
You simply dab your silicone pad onto the tension net, get the appropriate amount of product, and then pat it onto your skin like you do with any bb cushion. However, because the tension net is so finely woven, the product applies more evenly and naturally than with a sponge. You can see the fine mesh pattern here in the sponge with one quick dab:

Here it is unblended, stamped on the back of my hand, as you can see the mesh pattern transfers (but it blends out, don’t worry)

It’s a really fun delivery system and I’m a fan! I would love to see more tension products!

The pact itself is the same size as other Missha cushions, but it has a gold metallic hinged lid, so it’s a touch fancier in packaging than the M cushion. And while I don’t see any refills online at this time, the pact looks as if it could be reused with other Missha cushions.

This product sadly only comes in three shades, as is the case with most Korean complexion products, and the shades offered are very limited. I’ve got a warmer skintone and am a 25 in Mac products so I chose shade #3 Glow Beige, which is not as dark as shade #2 Natural Beige and is much warmer then the cool toned shade #1 Pink Beige. If you regularly use Missha complexion products, they offer this information about shade selection.

#1.Pink Beige If you used no.13 or bright no.21, you can this. #2.Natural Beige If you used dark no.21 or no.23, you can this. #3.Glow Beige If you used no.21 or middle-tone of no.23, you can this.

Now the most important part, formulation. This cream itself is, great! It’s formulated with “silk amino acids to help retain skin’s elasticity” and contains “a formula that contains 50% moisturizing ingredients” Those ingredients include xylitol and hyaluronic acid. This is actually a very smart combination because xylitol can be used as a humectant. It’s also said to help the skin retain its natural moisture and boost it’s own levels of hyaluronic acid, a natural lubricant that assists in collagen production. Xylitol is also thought to improve the skin’s barrier function and increase ceramide (a natural hydrating compound) synthesis. So you hit that with the additional hyaluronic acid in the formula and it’s aces, and it sure does work nicely. The ingredients to the pact are listed here on Cosdna, it’s a very interesting formula, with no irritants or acne triggers, I’m pretty impressed http://www.cosdna.com/eng/cosmetic_fbf5200670.html

My skin is going through a particularly dry spell right now with the season change, and this pact is a nice soothing addition to my makeup routine. However, I would say as long as your skin isn’t crazy oily, you could use this product with ease. Normal to slightly oily skins could still enjoy this in the dry fall and winter seasons. The coverage is also nice, like I mentioned before it applies very evenly and does a great job evening out skintone and covering minor blemishes. It dries to a nice semi-matte finish but with a hint of glow.

All in all I am a big fan of this product and highly recommend it should you fall into the very narrow shade range.
A very easy 5 out of 5 turtles with this fun pact with great ingredients

I have thus far only seen this product on w2Beauty, where it’s listed for the reasonable price of $19.84
http://w2beauty.com/en/missha-face-makeup/19462-missha-m-cream-tension-pact-spf37-pa-3-tones.html
I have always loved w2Beauty because of their free shipping, generous samples, and excellent customer service! And as always you can receive $5 off your first purchase by signing up for an account through my sponsor link http://w2beauty.com/?s=071087605 and entering code 071087605 at sign up!

CHOSUNGAH 22 DONG GONG MINN JELLO COLOR EYESHADOW PALETTE REVIEW

October 23, 2015 / The Beauty Wolf

With Korean Beauty getting more and more mainstream, we’re starting to get an influx of products easily available for purchase here in North America. (I for one welcome our K-Beauty overlords 😉 ) With places like Target, Forever 21, Urban Outfitters, and even the bastion of all things beauty, Sephora carrying K-Beauty products, I’m delighted with the direction I see this going in.

Speaking of Sephora, I have been so pleased to see them promoting K-Beauty in stores and in their mailings. If you walk into any Sephora right now you’ll see beautiful signage and displays showcasing different Korean beauty products. It’s everything I hoped for when I first got into this world. Seeing it so easily accessible at such a major influential retailer is thrilling!
Out of the many brands they’re now carrying, I noticed the addition of a few products from the Chosungah 22 brand, one of which is the Dong Gong Minn Jello Color Kit. When I saw this online I ordered it right away, Korean skincare is my bread and butter, but Korean cosmetics is where my heart really lies.

With it’s cute pop-art style packaging, this product is a real eye catcher. The casing itself is a nice size, about the size of a large pencil case with a similar type hinge and feel.

This palette of eyeshadows features six standard sized colours (each shade about the size of a Mac eyeshadow). The colours are warm toned and neutral with some very en trend dusky shades that are just perfect for Fall and adding a little warmth to your Winter. They have cute space names, here is Pluto and Venus, the lightest highlighter type shades:

Jupiter and Mars, which are my favourite shades

Mercury and Blackhole, which are great bold darks perfect for smoking the hell out of your eyes

What makes this stand out from other palettes, aside from the packaging, is the very unique formulation. These are not traditional powdered shadows, and while they are somewhat creamy, they are not a cream shadow either. Confused? Well, if you’ve ever tried Colour Pop eyeshadows these are very similar! They are an almost spongy, soft, creamy type shadow. If you press down into the shadow, they will depress, and they’re almost bouncy in texture. The closest I can get to trying to explain the texture is cream-ish to powder, but then again not really. Despite me not finding the words to describe these properly, rest assured, they are really fun to use.

The colours swatch true, if a little sheer, but that is kind of the point of this palette.

I really like the colour choices they’ve included in this palette. They’re neutral but not boring, and can be used for any time of the day. The wear time is great, but be aware I do not have oily eyelids so most eye products wear well on me.

If you’re wondering just how you’re supposed to work with this non-traditional eyeshadow texture, I have some suggestions. While you can use a synthetic brush to blend (and I do) the best way to pack on colour with these things is the pat them directly onto your lids with your finger. You can build coverage that way and it allows you a lot of freedom to play around. You can get a lovely sheer wash of colour for a simple daytime smokey look, or go more dramatic for the evening by building up to a dramatic opaque look by patting on a heavy coating. Because of the unique formulation, there is no fallout to speak of, so be as heavy handed with the colour as you’d like!

I’ve done some really fun eye looks with this palette and I’ve taken to adding in some of the Peripera Jewel Pots that I love so much into the mix for really dramatic nighttime eyes! Since both are finger friendly products, it’s like a glamorous grownup finger painting session when you get these two together. Who says you can’t have fun with your makeup?

This palette is a real pleasure, a lot of fun, easy available at Sephora in both the US and Canada, and is a good value. What’s not to love?

Five out of five little jelly turtles.

KLAIRS BB CREAM AND CONCEALER REVIEW

September 30, 2015 / The Beauty Wolf

Let me start off with a caveat, it sucks beyond belief that these products only come in one shade. Like, it really sucks. They’re shutting off so much of the market and denying so many people the chance to enjoy these well formulated, affordabe gems, but I guess it is what it is. But still, damn, it sucks! However, if you have the dumb luck to fall into this incredibly narrow shade range (say somewhere between NW or NC 15-30) please read on to hear about two wonderful products!

I’ve always liked Klairs, with their Aesop derivative packaging and affordability, they’re usually right on the mark. Their masks and chocolate soap are two of my favourite products from their line, and I’ve just added two more favourites to that list.

Klairs Illuminating Supple Blemish Cream, simply put, is an excellent BB cream. It comes in a little squeeze tube roughly the size and shape of a small toothpaste. The single shade is perfect for my skintone and once on it leaves me with a gorgeous dewy glow. The coverage is medium, and it goes on creamy and smooth. It never picks up on flakes or dryness the way some other BBs can *cough Etude House cough cough*.
The colour is true and doesn’t leave a grey or pink cast, just a clear, natural, healthy looking glow. I appreciate that a lot. Also appreciated is the full spectrum UVA and UVB protection from the SPF40. This is an excellent BB option for anyone looking for an affordable, uncomplicated, dewy, non-cushion BB cream. Since it’s not a BB cushion, it makes it easy to mix with volumers and other complexion boosters. I’ve been loving it mixed with the VDL Lumilayer Primer with a 1:2 ratio, it makes for a flawless radiant finish. I’ve worn it practically every weekend this summer. Here’s a slapdash application on the back of my hand to give you an idea of the finish

I’ve even given a tube of this away as a gift to a friend who is just now dipping her toes into Korean Beauty and BB cream, she absolutely loved it! Another convert to join our ranks, thanks Klairs!

The perfect compliment to this BB cream, and a real standout standalone winner is the Klairs Creamy & Natural Fit Concealer. Holy wow, I LOVE this concealer! Since I’m in my 30’s now I have the dreaded fine lines under my eyes that makes wearing concealer such a damn ordeal. The Creamy & Natural name for the product certainly fits, it goes on like a liquidy cream and doesn’t settle into those bitchass lines. Yesssssss thank you again, Klairs! It does a great job covering my dark circles without looking cakey or like I’m wearing obvious concealer (which is a huge pet peeve of mine!). This doesn’t quite have the same kind of coverage as my beloved Skinfood Salmon Dark Circle Concealer, but it’s a whole different animal. This is a liquid, doefoot applicator concealer. It’s much lighter and airier. However, it does have very decent coverage and I love it. To show how great the coverage is, here it is on a pretty dark nasty purple scar I have on my leg

Pretty dope, right? Imagine what that could do for your dark circles.

On my most hungover of days I wear this and my Salmon concealer together, using the Klairs all over the undereye and lightly dabbing just a bit of Skinfood Salmon concealer on the darkest of spots. I’m really impressed with this product and will certainly repurchase it in the future when I run out!

Both of these products are really great and deserve a full five our of five turtles

Available at Wishtrend here and here
And as always you can get $5 off your first order by signing up via my link https://www.wishtrend.com:48598/?s=022463306 and entering code 022463306 upon sign up!

HERA UV MIST CUSHION ULTRA MOISTURE REVIEW

August 14, 2015 / The Beauty Wolf

I have a new favourite cushion for people looking for a little more glow and moisture. I still love my Iope cushion for it’s moderate glow and light coverage, my Missha cushion for the semi-matte look, and now I have my a newly crowned Queen of the moisture and glow, the Hera UV Mist Cushion Ultra Moisture.

I had previously tried the Hera UV Mist Cushion but found that it just wasn’t moist enough for me. It was good, really good, but not a favourite. I still preferred my Iope cushion for the moisturizing role it played. I really love the feel of moisture in my face products, I find they plump up your skin and give it a really youthful appearance. When I saw that there was an Ultra Moisture version I really wanted to give it a try. I’m very partial to my Hera CC cream, which is my favourite CC cream on the market right now, so I knew Hera was capable of making a great cushion product and I hoped this was it.

Since I’m writing about it now I’m sure you can deduce that this was everything I was hoping it would be. The description from the InsiderBeauty website, which is where I got this from, describes things very well:

http://insiderbeauty.com/collections/makeup/products/uv-mist-cushion-ultra-moisture

HERA’s innovative ‘UV Mist Cushion Ultra Moisture’ has all the benefits of its predecessor ‘UV Mist Cushion’ but only better. With its ground-breaking ability to glide liquid foundation onto skin like a mist in the convenience of a puff, this unique cushion compact has a huge cult following in South Korea for its ability to give you natural, buildable coverage with a radiant, dewy finish. This formula offers ample hydration with broad spectrum SPF 34 and PA++ sunscreen.

Provides 4.2x more enhanced moisture than its predecessor ‘UV Mist Cushion’
Effective for all skin types
Long-lasting moisture and glow
Includes Camellia Oil and Achillea extracts known for its antioxidants and skin protection
Includes a full-sized refill cushion

We carry this product in 3 shades:

Cool Ivory #13 – Suitable for those with pale to light skin tones
Cool Vanilla #21 – Suitable for those with light to medium skin tones
Cool Beige #23 – Suitable for those with medium beige skin tones

It’s summer here so I went with the #23, which was perfect. The finish truly is radiant and dewy and my skin just feels so insanely cushy once the BB cream is patted on. It’s an instant wake-up looking skin and dull complexions. It also has really nice coverage. To illustrate that, I’ve swatched it here on the back of my hand with all of it’s gross green veins, as you can see the cushion all but covered them and left my skin looking dewy and even.

This really proved the “you can fake it till you make it” mantra I’ve been telling people in the media about Korean cosmetics.If you already have the original Hera cushion, here they both are used next to each other. On the left we have the Hera UV Mist Cushion and on the right the Her UV Mist Cushion Ultra Moisture, as you can see there is a marked difference in finish but the same great coverage.

In addition to how lovely the actual product is, it’s housed in a beautiful, sturdy, iridescent ,grey pealescent compact. It’s very well constructed and heavy, like most luxury brands are. The price point is roughly double a lot of other cushions, however keep in mind you’re actually getting TWO compacts at this price, so the actual price is on par with cheaper cushions. So for $45 each box comes with an already filled new compact, and a refill that you pop into the compact once the initial one is depleted and discarded, so it’s a sound buy. I truly love this compact, and I think I’m going to especially relish it this winter when my skin is crying from the -45c temperatures. This is a must try cushion if you love luxurious formulations, buildable coverage, and moisture in your BBs!

Five out of five turtles plus one more for being a holy grail!
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I got my Hera UV Mist Cushion Ultra Moisture from InsiderBeauty here, which is where I recommend picking it up! They are truly wonderful to shop with.

It’s also available on ebay here

and Amazon here with Prime shipping

PERIPERA WHOLLY DEEP JEWEL POTS REVIEW

August 1, 2015 / The Beauty Wolf

I love glow, I love glam, I love glitter. Well, I love grown up modern glitter, not the 90’s chunky glitter of yesteryear, but the shimmering kissed by the gods glittery formulations of today. Until very recently, if you wanted to have something light reflective on your lids you were going to have a little hell to pay in the form of fallout. Fallout is when your eye product comes loose and drifts below your bottom lash line, creating a mess. If you were lucky it was just a glittery dusting, at it’s worst you came out looking like you got punched by the toothfairy and ended up with a very glam black eye. Either way it was almost impossible to come out unscathed. My favourite performer, but worst fallout offender, was always the Mac loose pigments. They would delivery excellent colour payoff and shine but using them was a pain since you dealt with fallout from application and then more fallout after they’d been worn awhile. I both loved and hated them on set, I’d be armed with a fanbrush and makeup wipes just waiting for the inevitable dust cloud to settle under the model’s eyes.

When I first saw the Peripera Wholly Deep Jewel Pots I instantly thought of the Mac pigments. They were gorgeous but I was dreading the aftermath. As soon as I was able to play with one, my whole world got flipped upside down. These things are amazing. They’re so amazing I had to go back and edit the last sentence I wrote because it had three curse words in it, that’s how much I love these, they made me cuss. This product joins my Tonymoly Backstage Gel Liner as a holy grail must-have Korean cosmetic. Here’s why

With 8 beautiful shades to choose from, these things have insane sparkle without being overly teeny-bopper glittery. They’re sparkly and perfect for nighttime wear, but totally appropriate for daytime as well IMO. The formulation is insane, it’s somewhere between a cream and a powder, it reminds me of that magic sand stuff my toddler plays with. I’ve never used anything like it before. Because of the unique formulation you get all of the rich colour payoff, all of the shine, and NONE of the fallout.

It’s genius! It’s gorgeous! It’s genius and gorgeous! It’s a top supermodel neuroscientist! It’s the impossible! Really, you’ve got to try this product out. I’m about to buy the entire shade line, it’s that good! These are both cute and glamorous, sophisticated and fun. They apply best with your finger and sweep on easily with amazing colour payoff as you can see in the swatches above. I can’t sing their praises enough, I’m in love with these little pots of pure joy!

Grab yours at W2 Beauty for $15 http://w2beauty.com/en/clio-eye/16455-clio-peripera-peripera-wholly-deep-jewel-pot-8-colors.html
I have always loved w2Beauty because of their free shipping, generous samples, and excellent customer service! And as always you can receive $5 off your first purchase by signing up for an account through my sponsor linkhttp://w2beauty.com/?s=071087605 and entering code 071087605 at sign up!

Available on eBay here
http://www.ebay.com/itm/PERIPERA-WHolly-Deep-JEWEL-POT-Multi-Angle-Glitter-Multi-proof-as-brownie-/152072036330?var=&hash=item2368331fea:m:mUScq7-jsvUapOH5M0z5naA

Amazon here
http://www.amazon.com/Peripera-Wholly-Deep-Jewel-Trendsetter/dp/B010WLST5E/ref=sr_1_2_s_it?s=beauty&ie=UTF8&qid=1462523676&sr=1-2&keywords=peripera+jewel+pot

Five out of five turtles, plus one extra for changing the pigment game! Ugh, where have you been all my life?! Clio/Peripera continues to slay with their quality and innovation!
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You can also get these directly from Club Clio USA if you’re in the States. And if you happen to live in NYC drop by one of their locations to grab them in person!
http://clubclio-en.com/product/PERIPERA+WHOLLY+DEEP+JEWEL+POT/116

Lastly, you can see them in action in a tutorial I did over at the K-log, where we gave Kpop makeovers on a lazy Saturday using these pots and a few other great products!

MISSHA M CREAM TENSION PACT REVIEW

CHOSUNGAH 22 DONG GONG MINN JELLO COLOR EYESHADOW PALETTE REVIEW

KLAIRS BB CREAM AND CONCEALER REVIEW

HERA UV MIST CUSHION ULTRA MOISTURE REVIEW

PERIPERA WHOLLY DEEP JEWEL POTS REVIEW

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