Kingdom Liquid Eyeliner

Kingdom Liquid Eyeliner   1,260yen

I don't go to a Japanese drugstore often because basically everything is pretty expensive there. This eyeliner is 1260yen which is about $16 / 10 pounds. That's expensive for a drugstore product considering the fact that it's not specially branded. But I heard this particular product was very good so I gave it a try!

 

The packaging looks a little bit cheap...

 

The brush is quite thin and only the tip is bendy which makes it easy to line a thin liner.

I like the deep black colour, it defines my eyes well like this...

I really like this eyeliner as it's easy to use, it doesn't come off even when I put eyedrops in my eye which is very good! I don't know what else to say about eyeliner really, so let's conclude with me saying that I really liked it :P

Rimmel Match Perfection Illuminating Concealer

Rimmel Match Perfection Illuminating Concealer  5.99GBP

Although I have been using concealer under my eyes since I was 15, I had never found a perfect concealer to cover my dark circles up completely. The concealer I had been using for the past 8-9 months was too yellow and got cakey but somehow I didn't look for a better concealer. But the other day when I was wandering feelunique, I suddenly wanted to get a concealer and added this one into my basket without reading any reviews by any bloggers. 

The colour I got is 040 Soft Beige. I'm quite pale for Japanese and the foundation and concealer for Japanese are usually too yellow for me, so I thought this colour would match my skin colour.

I like this applicator with this small brush. But the tube is not so good to be honest because it doesn't come out even when I push the tube so hard! I push for like 5 seconds but it doesn't come out, and after a while it comes out suddenly and I end up with too much liquid on the brush! It's such a bother especially in the morning when I'm in hurry. 

Other than that I like this concealer. The brush is soft and doesn't irritate my sensitive eye ares. The consistency of the liquid is perfect, and it doesn't get cakey at all. It blends in really well and covers my dark circles and redness besides my nose.

At first I thought this colour was too pink for me, but it blends in perfectly actually. I would like a brighter colour actually for highlight because this concealer is supposed to be 2 in 1 -concealer and highlighter! This colour is a bit too dark to use as highlighter but it could be a cheaper version of YSL Radiant Touch Concealer. I really like this product, it's much cheaper and better than the one I'd been using!

I'm also interested in Collection 2000 Concealer as everyone's raving about it. Have you used Collection 2000 one? Do you have any recommendation for me? 

The Body Shop Organic Cotton Rounds

The Body Shop Organic Cotton Rounds  2.5GBP

Recently I realized that I had never paid attention on cotton pads before. It was new for me to use cleansing water such as Caudalie Cleansing Water and Bioderma Sensibio H2O to remove makeup, and also to use toner after washing my face. At the beginning I was using normal and the cheapest cotton pads that I got from drugstore but they irritated my skin hard. My skin was itching after wiped and sometimes it hurt even. I didn't want my skin especially my eye areas to get dark-pigmented by friction so I decided to get softer cotton pads.

Actually Lola from LolaStar gave me this incredible advice to get organic cotton wool pads, thanks so much Lola and this is why I love blogging and making blogger friends whom I can talk and ask about beauty! :)

Anyway, then I decided to get ones from The Body Shop. Simply because these are cheap and seemed to be good quality. These cotton pads are 100% organic which is perfect for me and also I loved the shape of them. I don't know why but I prefer round shaped cotton pads than square ones.

I really like the fact that it's got two different textures on each side. One side has got this bumpy texture which is perfect to be used to remove makeup. Another side has got smoother texture which I use for toner or lotion masks. They are so soft and smooth which doesn't irritate my skin at all, even when I wipe my eye areas on these quite hard! I love how it feels on my skin, and again I love the shape somehow :P

One bag has got 100 cotton pads which last at least a month and a half and it's only 2.5 pounds. I bought it in Japan so it was 368yen which is a little bit more expensive than the UK retail price, but there's not much difference. I am sure I will repurchase once I've used up two bags of cotton pads that I have now!

Have you tried organic cotton wool pads? What kind of cotton pads do you use?

My Favourite Vitamin Supplement: Hero Nutritionals Yummi Bears!

Hero Nutritionals Yummi Bears Multi-Vitamin and Mineral   $17.99

Do you take supplements daily? If you do, when do you take them, in the morning or before bed? As I'm a vegetarian, I am supposed to be taking supplements daily. But I'm very bad at sticking to the routine including taking medicines or supplements, unless it's a fun thing to do. So I've been taking this vitamin supplement for children recently because it's getting colder and I thought I needed to start taking vitamins to prevent the cold!

It's got four different flavors such as strawberry, orange, pineapple and grape. But to be honest with you,all of them taste the same and I cannot tell the difference at all. They all taste fruity which is very nice actually, but I cannot tell which flavor is which. They don't contain artificial colours or flavors which is important as obviously you don't want to take chemicals while taking supplements. 

I don't usually eat sweets much so I'm trying hard to eat 6 gummy bears a day, for me 6 gummy bears is quite a lot! I think it's perfect for children as it says on the package, kids would love this!! I strongly recommend it if you have children, basically serving size for kids is 3 bears a day which must be not enough for them because it's quite tasty :)

Now I'm looking for some other supplements especially for vitamin B6 which are not too sweet but not massive....because I found some American supplements are massive that I cannot even swallow! Let me know if you have any recommendation, I'd be happy to know! :)

Aveda Eye Color Trio in Sea Grass

This is my first makeup item from Aveda to try out. Actually it's one of the goodies from Zanka from Zanka talks cosmetics, and I absolutely love love love this eyeshadow!

 
This colour is called Sea Grass and apparently it's a limited colour. Since I received it from her I have been using it non-stop. The pinky beige colour on the left is the perfect for eyeshadow base, it brighten up my eyes without concealer. And I sometimes use the brown colour in the middle on my eyebrows, because it gives this soft light brown colour and it's the perfect colour to fill my eyebrows in. I also use this colour on my crease or to blend stronger colours. Finally the blackish-bluey colour is less wearable than the other two colours but still it's not too strong so I sometimes use it under my eyes with gray or black eyeshadow.

Here are the swatches. I cannot describe how much I love the colours. They are not too strong, quite sheer but very pigmented at the same time. Again I absolutely love the pink colour because this colour matches my skin tone perfectly and creates the base.

The official website describes this eyeshadow as...

• Three complementary colours build and blend effortlessly.
• colour-true, crease-resistant and non-fading.
• Aromatic flower waxes and oils give a smooth petal-soft texture.
• Mineral-derived mica creates reflective, lasting colour.
• Formulated without parabens.
• Free of talc and mineral oil.
• Ophthalmologist-tested.
• Packaged in 100% post-consumer recycled (PCR) clamshell and paper sleeve.

I am so in love with this eyeshadow, thanks Zanka!! Have you tried their makeup products? How did you get on with them?

 

Liz Earle Cleanse & Polish Hot Cloth Cleanser

Liz Earle Cleanse & Polish Hot Cloth Cleanser  14.25GBP


To tell the conclusion first, this is the best cleanser I have ever used. I always thought cleansing was a boring step of skincare because whatever you use it doesn't make a huge difference unless you have an allergy to the cleanser you're using or something. I thought cleansers cannot be effective and powerful enough to change your skin. But this cleanser from Liz Earle, the British beauty brand makes effective cosmetics with natural ingredients, changed my mind completely. Cleansers CAN be effective and powerful enough to change your skin.

This starter kit comes in this bag which makes it easy to carry it around to a trip or a gym / yoga classes if needed. 

 

Inside of the bag it's got two muslin cloths and a bottle of cleanser. This one is the 100ml pump bottle, and there is the 200ml tube as well which is 24 pounds itself. I personally like the pump bottle better because of how it looks nice. But the only downside of this bottle is that you cannot tell how much is left in there. I wish there was a thin and clear window on the side so that you can tell when to repurchase another bottle.

The official website says "Phase one is the cleansing. Free from mineral oil, it has a rich and creamy texture and swiftly removes all traces of face and eye make up, even stubborn mascara. Phase two is the polishing. Polish off the cream using the pure muslin cloth to gently dislodge dead skin cells and help reveal clean, soft and radiant skin" So basically this removes makeup, cleanse and polishes your skin!

I place one and a half pumps of the cleanser on my palm and gentle massage into my skin. I always remove eye makeup off with Bioderma or Caudalie's cleansing water beforehand because it clouds my contact lenses, so I only use enough amount to remove my foundation and dirt. If you wish to remove your eye makeup only with this cleanser, I guess you need two pumps.

This cleanser has got this rich and creamy texture which feels good on my skin. Also the herbal scent is very relaxing. It smells of Eucalyptus mainly, it also contains Rosemary and Chamomile. It reminds me of air in the early morning at the summer camp I joined when I was little, the smell of trees and greens...basically the smell of nature. It makes me want to take a deep breath while washing my face.

It spreads well over my face, and because it smells very relaxing I don't mind massaging for a while. I usually take about a minute to massage realistically and removes the cleanser with the wet muslin cloths. I like to wet the cloths with hot water, and place it on my face and steam it for about 10 seconds after the cleanser is removed. It's really relaxing!

Right after I dry my skin I notice the difference. My skin is softer and smoother obviously, and all the bumps and unevenness are completely gone. Because of this cleanser my skin has been in the best condition ever. It's like a baby's skin, and I don't even need foundation to cover up as my pores became smaller. 

Last weekend I stayed at home without makeup on, so I didn't use this cleanser because I didn't want to waste it. Then after 2 days my skin got a little bit bumpy and lost suppleness apparently. I am completely addicted to this cleanser, now I cannot live without it!! 

I'm dying to try out their limited one which has got Lavender and Rose essential oils in it, it must smell amazing. It's really a shame that their products are not sold here in Japan, but fortunately I can purchase them on their official website although the postage is a bit expensive -not their fault, it's as it is... Anyway I will definitely repurchase it for sure, I might get a bigger one in tube. I'm so glad that I finally found the effective cleanser!

Have you ever tried their cleanser? What did you think about it? Let me know!

My Skincare Routine - Morning

Today I would like to share my morning skincare routine! Hope you enjoy :)

Shigeta Awakening Radiance Mousse
I wrote the full review here if you're interested. Shigeta is a Japanese brand which was actually launched in France first. They only use natural and organic ingredients and are against animal testing. This cleansing foam contains fragrant rose water and rose essential oil which give a heavenly scent to it. It comes out as foam so it's very easy to cleanse your face and I just like to use it in the morning because it doesn't remove makeup and also the scent is perfect to awake my skin.

Caudalie Grape Water
This is basically just water. It's fragrance free 100% grape water. Apparently grape water is good for your skin but to be honest I haven't noticed any difference since I started using it. I just like to spritzing this fine mist after I wash my face to refresh.

Aveda all sensitive moisturizer  34GBP
I'm not going to talk about how amazing this product is here as I've written enough already before, basically I cannot live without this product. The end.

Weleda Wild Rose Smoothing Day Cream 13.95GBP
I received this product from lovely Zanka from Zanka talks cosmetics, and I've been loving it so much. It's the perfect day cream which is light and yet moisturizing, with this amazing rosy scent. It moisturizes my skin just enough and I love it!

Devita Solar Protective Moisturizer SPF 30   $14.15
Read full review here! I love this creamy texture so much, it's easy to spread and feels like it gives a thin veil over my face to protect it from the sun. But recently I realized that my waterproof eyeliner transfers to my eyelid when I put this cream on my eyelid. So if you're considering getting this cream avoid your eye area otherwise it ruins your makeup! And the reason why I use Weleda's cream before this one is because it dries out my skin a little in this colder season. It might be too light for dry skin.
 
Balance Me Wonder Eye Cream 20GBP
 Full review is here.  This is my favourite eye cream ever! I love the pump because I don't have to scoop using a spatula like I used to do. The pump bottle makes it much easier to apply eye cream a few times a day. This cream is perfect under the makeup because it's very light-textured and does sink in quickly. It makes the skin around the eye area very smooth which prevents a concealer to get cakey. I also love the lovely scent in the morning :)

What are your morning skincare essentials?

BIODERMA Sensibio H2O

BIODERMA Sensibio H2O  840yen

I think it was a couple of years ago when I heard about this product for the first time. I heard it was good and was one of the biggest-hyped products at that time. And recently I've been hearing and reading about this product so much again here and there so I thought I should give it a try. This small bottle (100ml) was supposed to be 1260yen but it was on sale at the time I picked it up. Still 840yen for this small bottle is a joke but I just wanted to try.

Recently I realized that I rub my eye area quite hard when I wash my face to get rid of mascara and eyeliner, and that could have been one of the causes of my dark circles. I thought it would be nice to use this type of cleansing water to remove eye makeup first using organic cotton pads so that I wouldn't be too harsh on the area while washing.

 

Look how tiny the bottle is!! It would be very good for travel, you can even bring it on flight as it's 100ml. I soak a cotton pad with Sensibio H2O and gently wipe my whole face before wash. I normally use 2-3 cotton pads to remove makeup including my eye makeup. I don't mind leaving a bit of my foundation on my skin because I wash right after using this anyway.

I was surprised how easy it was to remove makeup using this product as if it's melting my makeup or something. The only thing I don't like about this product is the smell. It doesn't have any perfume added but it does smell of the ingredients, like a chemical smell. I don't know how to describe the smell but I just don't like it at all. I have to run to the bathroom to wash my face right after using this, because I cannot stand the smell! I really wish it had a nice relaxing scent like Caudalie Cleansing Water, that would make the process much more fun.

Overall, as everyone says, it is a good product which does its job. But I won't repurchase it simply because it's too expensive for quality and I didn't like the smell. Skincare is something I want to enjoy, and I have more other choices for cleansing water which smell nice and does its job. 

I would like to try cleansing water from other brands,do you have any recommendation for me?? What is your favourite?  :)

Small Samples Giveaway

Today I would like to give these bags of Japanese beauty products samples to two of my precious readers. If you are interested in Japanese beauty products, please let me know then I will send a bag to you :)

One of these bags have these samples in it. My favourite is Samourai Woman Body Soap, which smells really really good. And I also love the brand "do Organic" which is a Japanese organic beauty brand, it doesn't smell good or anything but very effective in my opinion. I also love love love the brand called "Moe Moe" you can see the small bottle at the upper left, it's the leave-in conditioner which makes your hair smell good and so soft.

Here are the samples in another bag. The eye mask right is a very unique product. Basically you take it out from the bag then it warms up and a little bit steamy, which makes you relax. This bag has got my favourite shampoo called Via Organica, it smells really good. 

Most of the samples have English writings on it so you might recognize what they are, but for those don't have English writings I will put a note on each so that you know how to use them.

I would like to do a proper giveaway in the future, with some Japanese products including Shiseido, DHC and some drugstore cosmetics!

To enter this tiny giveaway, please follow my blog and leave a comment and let me know that you're interested. It will be open until 31st October. It is open internationally so please enter if you're interested whereever you are!

Make sure there is your email address written on your blog somewhere so that I can contact you, or leave it / personally email me your email address :)

HANA Organic Moon Night Milk

HANA Organic Moon Night Milk  4500yen

I wrote about HANA organic HERE right after I started this blog. HANA organic is my favourite Japanese beauty brand and I even think their quality represents formality for beauty of us Japanese. Look at the packaging, it looks very elegant, beautiful and Japanesey somehow, doesn't it? But of course, it's not just the packaging that is good.

This is actually nighttime moisturizer. It repairs your skin during sleep when your skin barrier becomes weaker. It contains organic rose water and many different essential oils such as ylang ylang, orange, neroli, lavender, geranium and clary sage. As you might be able to imagine, it smells amazing. It mainly smells rosy, but not like a sweet innocent scent, it's more like a mysterious herbal mature scent if it makes sense.

It's a quite loose consistency which spreads very well on your skin. I only need two pumps to cover my whole face which means it lasts long. It doesn't make my skin oily or greasy, but it feels like it creates a thin moisture barrier on my skin. It is moisturizing enough for my dry skin, but at the same time I think it's suitable for oily / combination skin as well because it's such a light texture.

Their products are not the cheapest in the world but they are effective and feel good to use. I gave a small sample to my friend and she fell in love with it and now she bought the full-sized one. I strongly recommend this item for any skin types!

HANA Organic Official Website

Make Up Forever Black Tango Nail Polish - Blue Black

I wrote about the same nail polish in "Green Black" the other day, and today I would like to write about the colour called "Blue Black".  Blue Black is a very dark navy colour, which looks less blackish than Green Black in my opinion.

It doesn't have glitters but it's got this very beautiful shimmer in it, which looks chick and nice. I personally like the green one better than this one, just because the green one goes better with my skin tone.

Again, their nail polish is very easy to apply, and it leaves very strong colour with two coats. It gets dry quickly, I think it didn't take 15 minutes to dry completely. I love both colours and will be wearing them a lot this autumn / winter! They've got another colour "Red Black" which is also amazing. I don't own this one unfortunately but it is a classic red which all girls should have! 

What do you think of this blackish colours? :)

Redken Haircare Products!

Redken Scalp Relief Dandruff Control Shampoo
Redken All Soft Conditioner

As we don't have Redken here in Japan, I didn't know about the brand at all until I've read a blog post or watched a video or something a few months ago. It didn't catch my attention by its looks or opinions by bloggers, but I found their Scalp Relief Shampoo on feelunique when I was looking for a good shampoo which doesn't irritate my scalp. I did a little research about it and read some reviews, and found out that people who had a sensitive scalp loved this product. So I decided to give it a try! To pair with this shampoo, I picked the best selling conditioner.

  
I was a bit surprised to see this white liquid as I didn't expect anything like this! It looks like a paint or something, a very unusual look for Shampoo.

It's recommended to apply on your dry scalp, massage into it and leave it for 5 minutes, then add warm water and wash your hair like you normally do. I tried this way but it didn't work for me. It made my scalp greasy somehow although usually it's very dry. Maybe it means it worked because my scalp was no longer dry but it shouldn't make it greasy either...right? 

So now I rinse my hair with warm water first, then wash my hair with this shampoo. I think it does work, because since I started using this shampoo my scalp has calmed down. Before I had a serious problem with my scalp, sometimes it didn't let me sleep because of itching! 

It smells minty and herbal which I am not a big fan of, but it doesn't leave any scent on my hair so it doesn't matter.

Then let's move on to this conditioner which I am in love with. This is definitely one of the best conditioner I've ever used. It makes my hair so soft as it claims. I cannot imagine how soft my hair would be when I use this conditioner paring with all soft shampoo!

It smells like coconut to me, although some people say it smells peachy and fruity. Is it my nose...? Again it doesn't leave a scent on my hair much, which is a shame because I like this smell. My mum has really stiff hair which is opposite to me, and she noticed the huge difference on her hair after she used this conditioner. She loves it and would like to repurchase it once we run out of it. 

I really like Redken, it's not too pricey but does its job. Do you like Redken? What's your favourite item of it? :)

Shigeta Awakening Radiance Mousse

Shigeta Awakening Radiance Mousse   18euro

If you are in France, you might have heard of Chico Shigeta. She is a Japanese beauty therapist living in France, and her clients include John Galliano, Sophia Coppola and Isabelle Adjani. She studied naturopathy in France and launched Chigeta in early '00s. Her blended essential oils are a massive hit in Japan because you can apply them directly on your skin unlike normal essential oils. She launched this new skincare range recently, so I thought to give it a try. 

The base of  this cleanser is bulgarian rose floral water which smells nice. I was expecting more rosey sweet scent but it's got this weird chemical smell. I know it doesn't contain chemical because that's against Shigeta's philosophy but it does smell funny to me. It also contains coconut oil and hyaluronic acid to moisturize your skin.  

I mainly use this cleanser in the morning because it doesn't remove makeup. Also the feel of foam is really nice in the morning, it's like washing your face with a giant soft marshmallow! This foam protects my skin from rubbing too much while washing my face, and that's actually how it should be according to Chico. 

It leaves moisture on my skin which is perfect for my dry skin. I'm getting used to the chemical smell though it still bothers me a bit. The most important thing is that it does its job, and makes my skin looking fresh. 

I don't think I will repurchase it because I prefer milky cleanser rather than foaming one, but this is a very good product for sure. I recommend it to people who tend to rub their skin hard while washing, it's the perfect cleanser to prevent that bad habit!

Have you heard of Shigeta? 

NUXE Ultra-Nourishing Lip Balm

NUXE Ultra-Nourrissant Ultra-Nourishing Lip Balm   9.5GBP

I have very dry lips. I cannot live without lip balm throughout the year because even in summer my lips get chapped and sometimes start bleeding which looks gross! But another problem is that my lips are very picky. They are spoiled and they get chapped when I apply lip balm they don't like. What kind of lips are they? Anyway, it's really hard for me to find lip balm which doesn't make my lips chapped, I've tried lip balm from more than 30 different brands I guess.

When I heard that this product worked, I just knew it would work on my lips. I don't know why but I did, and the next moment I found myself purchasing it on feelunique. I didn't even think that it would be a waste if it didn't work. 

It came in this little paper box. It was my first NUXE!

First of all, I LOVE this glass pot. It's frosted and that's how I like a glass pot to be. It's a little bit heavy to carry abound (some people mentioned that they leave it next to their beds so that they can apply it before bed, but I put it in my bad and carry it around) though.

It's got this very smooth texture that I cannot describe well. It's different from any other lip balm I own, and I've never seen this kind of lip balm before. Basically it's not like an oily-based lip balm, it's more like cream-based if that makes sense. 

When I apply it on my lips, it feels like that this lip balm sticks to my lips and stays there for long. It keeps moisturizing my lips and doesn't get dry quickly. But the amazing part is that although it feels like a thin veil is sitting on my lips, it doesn't feel sticky or greasy at all. It's just moisturizing and feel silky.

It's got this amazing citrus and orangey scent that I love. I remember someone (I don't remember but one of those famous beauty bloggers) said that she preferred a sweeter scent and I understand that some people prefer a different kind of scent but I just cannot imagine someone saying "Ew, I hate this smell!" because it's such a subtle, refreshing scent. 

Over all, it's one of the best lip balm I've ever used. The pot, the scent, the texture...I love everything about it. The most important thing is that it does its job without any discomfort. Also I think it will last quite long. I used to spend 1,000yen on one lip balm which lasted about a month, but this lip balm must last much longer. I am so happy that I finally met my must-have lip balm!

Now I'm very interested NUXE, do you have any favourite item of the brand? Would you like to recommend some products of NUXE? :)

Stila Natural Beauty Eye Shadow Palette

Stila Natural Beauty Eye Shadow Palette  14.5GBP
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As you might know, I'm not a makeup junkie. I'm more like a skincare/haircare/bodycare/scent junkie. The reason why makeup doesn't excite me much is because it doesn't dramatically change my appearance. I think it's because I don't have deep sockets which is the typical complaint Japanese girls have (I guess) and also I'm not skilled so I just simply don't know what to do.

But as watching many beauty videos, I finally got to the stage where I wanted to change my appearance and made an effort. Well, that's my excuse to get this eyeshadow palette :P

This palette includes 13 different colours of eyeshadow, and all of them look wearable. The cover has got a magnet inside and it closes tightly. I love how it looks, I don't care the fact that it's too big and will never fit in any of my makeup bags.

It's got 7 matte shades and 6 shimmer shades. Apparently it's worth 78 pounds!

Here are the swatches! 
1 - Pink Sugar
2 - Blush
3 - Rosey
4 - Toffee

I personally like Rosey and Toffee, I used those two colours to create this look below:

 
 I know, you can't see much! Why does it happen all the time? How do people take their closeup photos which actually show the colours? Anyway I used Rosey on the outer corner of the eye, and Toffee to blend in. I applied a white eyeshadow on the inner corner of the eye which you cannot see in this photo...sorry.

5 - Linen
6 - Vanilla
7 - Sand
8 - Hazelnut

So, where is Hazelnut? What's the point of making an eyeshadow which doesn't leave a colour? I was disappointed on Hazelnut because I really liked Sand and Hazelnut, the only greenish colours in this palette. 

I really like Linen and Vanilla a lot, they both are perfect for a base and a highlight. 

9 - Caramel
10 - Almond
11 - Amber
12 - Apricot
13 - Merlot 

These colours are very pigmented especially Caramel. I don't think Almond and Amber suit my skin colour unfortunately so I might not use them much. Do you have an idea how to use those colours without looking too orange-y? 

Overall this is a very useful palette that I would like to use on daily basis.  I'm much more excited to do my makeup every morning since I got this palette. I definitely have a positive opinion about Stila's eyeshadows now, the shimmer is subtle but definitely gorgeous. 

I've been interested in another Stila eyeshadow palette which is 25 pounds. Have you ever used eyeshadows from Stila? What's your opinion about them? :)