June's Little Black Beauty Box: The Asia Style Collection Box ★

One of the newer beauty subscription boxes around, I think The Little Black Beauty Box has the most gorgeous box, the box really looks like a book! It even opens like a book. After taking out the items I'm using it as decoration hehehe. The June box is the 4th box, and the theme is Asia Style Collection.

The Little Black Beauty Box is a project by Sharon Au; a collaboration between Mediacorp's StyleXStyle and the department store Robinsons. For S$19.90, it's a steal! However the boxes are made in very limited quantities each month, and they're always sold out! (*´д`*) Been wanting to get it but April's was sold out, May's was sold out...thank goodness I was able to get this! 

The bottom of the super gorgeous box, it really looks like a book! 

Even the side/spine has words that  make it like a book.

The items are neatly packed inside with crepe paper.

Info card introducing the theme of the box, and behind it is a checklist of offers from participating brands.

Sadly the box does not come with a card listing the items in the box...

All the items in the box.
Quite a generous variety and quantity, don't you think so?

Plus many of the items are newly launched ♡

Laneige Snow BB Soothing Cushion SPF50+ PA+++
Been wanting to try the BB cushion, because the texture seems so unusual! (*´ω`*)♪

FANCL Mild Cleansing Oil

Kose Sekkisei Sun Protect Gel SPF50 PA+++ 

Forgot to take a close up photo for Kose!

Holika Holika Luminous Silk BB in 01 Light Beige SPF42 PA+++

Holika Holika Black Caviar Anti-Wrinkle Cream

Holika Holika Miracle Real Skin Finish

Holika Holika 3D Aura Bright Patch

Holika Holika 36.5° Fermentation Cordyceps Sinensis Mask Sheet

Holika Holika $10 Gift Voucher

Tonly Moly Intensive Firming Care C Zone Patch

Tony Moly Intensive Firming Care Lip Smile Patch
So many masks!

Shiseido Perfect UV Protector SPF50+ PA+++

Sebamed Feminine Intimate Wash

Sebamed Olive Face & Body Wash

Anna Sui Secret Wish perfume sample 

Kinohimitsu Collagen Drink

It actually tastes kinda nice chilled! It has a fruity flavor to mask the taste of the collagen. I've previously bought collagen powder from Japan, but stopped taking it after a few cups because the taste of the collagen was to strong for me... (*´д`*)

Redoxon Anti-oxidant tablets 

If you're interested, the themes of the boxes so far:

★ March: The Whitening Box, featuring whitening products, in light of Robinson's Whitening Fair which was held around when the box was released.

★ April: The Star Power Box, featuring "A-list coveted beauty treats", in view of the Star Awards which on around the month box was released.

★ May: The Spring Awakening Box, featuring items inspired by "all things fresh and beautiful".

★ June: The Asia Style Collection Box, featuring Japanese and Korean brands, in view of the Asia Style Collection show which will be held next week on 22 June (Tokyo Girls Collection! Rola and Tsubasa!!! Girls Generation! 2NE1! AI! Thelma Aoyama! Looking forward to the event ♡)

★ July: The Men's Grooming Box, guess it will be featuring men's products?
★ July: Stardust Edition, a special limited edition box featuring Japanese and Korean brands, in view of the Asia Style Collection show, a collaboration with John Little's Stardust corner?  

klairs Illuminating Supple Blemish Cream SPF 40 PA++

I love trying different BB creams and foundations, and something I recently added to my stash is the klairs Illuminating Supple Blemish Cream SPF 40, PA++. I've read many positive reviews of older klairs items by Korean bloggers in the past, but I've never tried the brand because it's difficult to get outside of Korea...It wasn't even available on Gmarket Korea (´Д`)

Packaging.

First impression: I love the minimalist packaging, it looks very chic. The long tube shape also feels nice to hold it in my hands ( ´ ▽ ` )ﾉ

This product can be used by both women and men,

check out the video of Tay applying the BB cream and other makeup on her boss, Eddie!

The opening of the tube is long and narrow,
which allows for good control of the amount of product you want to get.

This BB cream's main functions are:

✿ SPF40 PA++

✿ Whitening

✿ Wrinkle care

✿ Sebum control

All functions are certified by the KFDA (Korean Food and Drug Administration). 

Details/information on the packaging.

The BB cream is made in Korea, and expires 12 months after opening.

Great news for non-Korean speakers/readers, they have English instructions and ingredients list on their packaging, and it's proper English not Engrish^^ They even leave an email address for you to report adverse reactions, very thoughtful. 

For people with sensitive skin who might be worried about the suitability of the product, here's some information about klairs products in general (not just the BB cream):

☆ Low-irritation cosmetics specialized for sensitive/troubled skin.

☆ Collaboration with professional dermatologic cosmetics

☆ No alcohol

☆ No animal testing

☆ No paraben

☆ No artificial coloring

☆ Eco-friendly

☆ Minimal fragrance

The tube.

The first time I've seen BB cream come in a tube like this, it really reminds me of a toothpaste tube! But I love the long design, personally it's more convenient and aesthetically pleasing to me^^ Plus there's the line "You look so wonderful just the way you are", which is always nice to see when I pick up the tube to use it.

klairs' recommended instructions on how to apply, I'm sorry if my translation are a bit off!

For me I do step 1, apply dots on my cheeks, nose, forehead, chin, then use the Sigma F80 flat top kabuki brush to blend everything on.

Oiliness test:

It's not as oily as the ElishaCoy CC Cream, so this would be suitable for daily use in tropical weather countries like Singapore. It's not very dry , and would be great for ladies working in an air-conditioned environment. If you don't work indoors, I would set this with loose powder because it does tend to melt after a few hours of wear outdoors...

Consistency test:  It's quite thick and creamy, but is non-sticky and blends into skin easily.

Personally, I prefer creamier BB creams because they blend easier on my skin and end up less streaky. Streakiness is a problem I encounter with products having thinner consistencies...anyone else face the same problem? Although the klairs BB cream has a thick consistency, it doesn't cake and it blends well into my skin.

Coverage comparison.
The BB cream has buildable light-medium coverage and leaves a dewy glow.

It can cover some freckles and redness, but not totally, so you might need extra concealer if you have a lot of redness. The product has a smooth, dewy finish, and if you work in an air-conditioned environment you can probably forgo loose powder when using this.

Right now WISHtrend.com has the klairs BB cream on offer at a 20% discount, going for USD18.50.

http://www.wishtrend.com/beauty-steal/587--klairs-illuminating-supple-blemish-cream.html

I don't know how long the offer will last, but the regular price is USD22.99.

Some of klairs' other bestsellers are the Rich Moist Soothing Cream and Rich Moist Soothing Serum.
I've read lots of Korean reviews on these^^

But the item that totally caught my eye was the CHERRY BLOSSOM AND ROSE FACIAL MIST
http://www.wishtrend.com/toner-mist/262--klairs-essential-facial-mist-cherry-blossom-rose.html

Almost all my Korean friends carry around some sort of facial mist to refresh their faces throughout the day.  Feels really good to spray ♡ I used to use Avene's Thermal Water, but now I'm currently using Innisfree Green Tea Mineral Mist (smells great!) and Hanskin Hyaluron Facial Mist.

Anyway, you can use the code "RFXLSCOZ" at checkout for a USD3 voucher. 

- Minimum USD20 order

- Expires end of 2013

- Can combine with other vouchers

If you live in Singapore, WISHTrend also has a Qoo10/Gmarket shop to cater to Singaporeans. They've narrowed the selection to their more popular items, so not everything on the WISHTrend website will be there. But they often have promotions and special deals, so the prices come up less than the main site prices.

YouTube FanFest + Music Matters!

A little bit late, but it was a great week! I'll try go in chronological order, though it might jump about a bit^^ Best saved for last! ♪(*´ω｀*) The YouTube FanFest was a two-day event (May 20-21) featuring appearances and performances by 18 YouTube acts; followed by Music Matters (trade conference May 21-23, performances May 22-24 at Clarke Quay).

Special colored wristband that let us sit in the front 2 rows mwahahaha.

Day 1, first up was Steph Micayle.

Next was Chonny!

David Choi!

He also performed at various pubs in Clarke Quay from Wed-Fri, caught the Paulaner perf on Friday.

Hikakin, awesome Japanese beatboxer!
He can do amazing stuff and make sounds that don't sound human :O

Cooking with Dog!
The food always looks sooo good and drool-worthy...

Mighty Car Mods and Namewee.

Chester See! He was the last act for Day 1. 

My favorite song of his is Who am I to Stand in Your Way, which was the first song he performed, yay. He also belted out a few lines of Bromance, and sang God Damn You're Beautiful and Nice Guys (requested by the audience!).

First act of Day 2, JV Joseph Vincent! 

 Surprise appearance by Steve Tyler from Aerosmith!
Aerosmith was performing at the Social Star Concert on May 24.

Simon and Martina / Eatyourkimchi! ♥ They're so adorkable :D 

They're one of my favorites on YouTube!

GAC from Indonesia and The Viral Fever from India. 

Nicko's Kitchen, who had a live demonstration/hands-on segment for some audience members!

Dome Pakorn Lam from Thailand, whose song was super energetic and catchy! 

 Boyce Avenue!

They're wearing different clothes because photos are from two performances. In addition to YTFF, I got to catch their showcase at the Music Matters Conference, which was a few days after. Also caught them a while before they entered the lift. They were in a rush so only got a group shot!

 Also caught the YTFF host, Dom Lau, who's super tall. 

I'm wearing 4-inch heels and he's still so much taller!

Some interesting presentations by Barks and Livenation at the Music Matters Conference. 

 Back to Day 2, Ryan Higa!

The young screaming fangirls were craaazy loud!

Special appearance/performance by Andrew Garcia during his segment.

And a surprise (short, 30-second) appearance by Wes from Wong Fu Productions!

Wong Fu is probably my favorite channel on YouTube, These Four Walls and When Five Fell are my absolute favorite videos ♥ I love how simple objects can be used to tell wonderful, meaningful stories. Couldn't stop crying the first few times I watched them (T___T)

These Four Walls ♥

When Five Fell ♥

Wes held an impromptu meet-and-greet a few days later, sooo many people turned up but he was really nice and stayed till everyone got a picture. He is really, really, super nice. I kinda felt really old being there because most of the people that showed up were almost a decade younger than me (ﾟДﾟ)

So, that was a loong but fun week (May 20-25)! The weekend before was the Audi Fashion Festival and Wine Voyage, so I was out till late every single day. I had tickets to see the Aerosmith concert, but the night before I fell quite sick, high fever for next few days, and a bad bout of the flu (>A<).

Too Cool For School Twin Color Eye Crayons ★

One of my favorite Too Cool For School products, the Twin Color Eye Crayons! ♥ There are 5 color combinations available, and I got 4. Each crayon is supposed to have a "base" color and "main" color, though I don't actually use them like that. To me they're like 2 "main colors". So I have 8 colors in total! ♥

Each crayon retails for 12,000won, and they each come adorably packaged in a triangular prismy brown paper box ♥

The "base color" ends: #3 Gold Beige, #1 White Pink, #2 Pearly Red and #5 Metallic Grey. 

The "main color" ends: #3 Warm Green, #1 Dark Purple, #2 Pearly Brown and #5 Dark Navy. 

I actually prefer the colors of these ends to the "base" ends!

 

The Eye Crayons are soooo smooth and creamy, and go on like a dream. They're all extremely pigmented and pearly, and are super easy to blend. My only complaint is that since they're so thick, they're hard to use as eyeliner at the outer corners, especially if you want to make sharp edges or cat eyes. So I use these as color eyeliners/eyeshadow, and use a black liquid/pen liner over it because I like sharp-edged eyeliner.

I don't think the Eye Crayons fit regular sharpeners, you have to get the sharpener from Too Cool For School. The Eye Crayons are the same thickness as the Lip Crayons, so the sharpener is the same, but for hygiene purposes I bought two sharpeners, one for the lip crayons and one for the eye crayons.

 #1 White Pink + Dark Purple 

My favorite crayon of the lot, because the dark purple is my absolute favorite color! I don't know why it seems more brownish/maroon in the photos, but the actually color is really more like the crayon than the swatch. The White Pink is a very sweet color, and looks like the "without flash" color, though slightly more pink in real life.

#2 Pearly Red + Pearly Brown 

For this it's the opposite, the color of the pearly brown is actually more like the swatch than the crayon.

#3 Warm Green + Gold Beige 

I didn't buy this at first, but after leaving Seoul I kept thinking about the green and how unique it looked, so I asked my friend to help me get it^^ I like using the gold beige for highlighting the inner corners of the eyes, it's not too white and doesn't have huge glitter chunks.

#5 Dark Navy + Metallic Grey 

I really like the navy! 

I like the Metallic Grey too, though I think I'd like it even more if it were slightly darker?

These were part of my Too Cool For School haul from Seoul last year. 

Other posts on Too Cool For School stuff:

★ Too Cool For School Blending BB Series

★ Too Cool For School Lip Products

I don't think I can describe how much I love Too Cool For School! I love the fun, quirky designs of the products, they're definitely an unconventional cute, but cute nonetheless and oh-so-fun! And the products themselves are amazing ♥♥ The Blending BB Cream is one of my absolute favorite products from Too Cool For School, and so is the Lip Tint~

za 15th Anniversary ♡

2013 marks za's 15th anniversary, and what are birthdays without parties and cake? 

The theme was pink and yellow!

I remember my first encounter with za, waaay back in the year 2000, when I was just 10. The first za product I ever used: their Two-duo Lip Gloss. Each large tube of gloss had two colors, and as a 10-year old I was so fascinated because when you squeezed it, a bit of both colors came out, and you got a magical mixed color! ♡ (Credits to Google for these images of the gloss, I don't think I even started using the Internet or had a digital camera in 2000^^)

Instead of cake, there was a lovely selection of pies and drinks at the event, which was held at Window Sill Pies, a quaint little cafe with an amazing selection of pies~ ♥ I tried the Funny Apple Pie and Banana Brittle Pie, yumms. 

Dangling from the ceiling of the cafe were adorable decorations featuring illustrations by Naho Ogawa!

A Tokyo-born freelance illustrator, Naho Ogawa graduated from the prestigious Parson's School of Design in New York. While still in college, she collaborated with Anna Sui to design T-shirts! I love her illustrations, they're so sweet and delightful, and I love the style of how her colors sometimes exceed the black "outlines". Her works have also been featured in Vogue Bambini Italia and Vogue Girl Korea.

To commemorate its 15th birthday, za will be releasing a super cute, limited edition foundation case designed by Naho Ogawa...can you spot it amongst the sea of cuteness?

Awesome pink handmade "cake" decorated with some of za's current best-selling products.

And topping the cake, the lovely foundation case!

The foundation casing is for za's Perfect Fit Two-way Foundation, which is formulated with hyaluronic acid and collagen for all-day moisture and hydration. It provides decent UV protection with SPF20 PA++. It also has pore and oil control properties to keep skin matte and fresh. 

The 10 functions the foundation claims to provide:

★ Spreads lightly ★

★ Applies smoothly ★

★ High coverage ★

★ Even finish ★

★ Reduces pore visibility ★

★ Evens skintone ★

★ Corrects dull skin ★

★ Non-greasy over time ★

★ High staying power ★

★ Retains brightness ★

Close up of the uber cute limited edition 15th anniversary foundation case.

Love the colors, illustrations and girlishness of the design ♥ I'm definitely a girly girl, so anything this sweet, pink, colorful and pretty gets my stamp of approval ☆ Mark your calendars for 4th July 2013, for that's when the adorable foundation case will be launched in Watsons stores island-wide. It will retail for S$9.90, so grab it while you can as it's limited edition!