The sheet mask worth trying - Leaders Mediu Amino Lifting Mask
No alcohol-denat, few fillers, fragrance as the last ingredient, and a beautiful and rare array of amino-acids. That was the most promising ingredients list, I have ever seen in a sheet mask. Amino acids are proven anti-agers, as powerful as retinoids.
It is very pleasant to use as well. The mask is in the correct size, not massive, not tiny, and is soaked in the essence generaously. Give it a try. You can find it on ebay, in set of ten, at around 10$.
I might have found THE sunscreen - Dr. G Medi UV Ultra Sun Cream Review
This may be it, the mineral, UVA/B covering, no-ghost effect, weightless sunscreen, that everybody is searching after. I found it by a lucky coincidence. This came in a 1ml sample, along with an online K-beauty buy. One day on August 2015, I had to travel by train, departing very early. So I left the house, only washing my face, and throwing the sample in my bag for this one day commute. I slathered it on, at the train station and enjoyed immeadiately its lightness and hydration. Of course I ended up ordering it. Lets look at the ingredients list:
This is a spf 50+, PA+++, mineral-only sunscreen. I prefer mineral sunscreens to chemical ones, unless I go to a summer holiday by the sea, and I am exposed to excessive UV radiation. You can scare yourself about chemical sunscreens here (a great blog to follow BTW), The ingredients list is like a dream actually, not only the mineral filters but all the antioxidants, namely niacinamide, vitamin e, flower extracts, make this an exceptionally good one. Hey, and ALCOHOL-FREE, unlike most of the very-hyped asian sunscreens.
And it feels good too. It spreads easily and is slightly hydrating. My combination/oily skin does not need any other moisturizer during almost 100% humid, sticky Istanbul summer. I use this on top of Paula’s Choice Liquid BHA 2%, and this combination stays put, protects me without breaking me out. I smell a hint of fragrance, but it disappears in seconds. And the best of all is that, this sunscreen does not leave any white residue. It does have a slightly shiney finish, but this does not bother me. I see some pore blurring, priming effect as well.
Overall, a truly hidden gem, meeting all check boxes of sunscreens. Try it, this may be it, really.
Low pH cleanser: Su:m37 Miracle Rose Cleansing Stick, because I will never get bored of this one.
Low pH toner: Clinique Mild Clarifying Lotion, because alcohol-free, fragrance-free, readily available in where I live. (P.S. both Caroline Hirons and Paula Begoun like it.)
Something anti-oxidant and hydrating: Sidmool Secret of Red Astaxanthin Concentrate, because I had it, and it is light enough to allow penetration of the next L-AA product.
Vitamin C + Last step before sunscreen: La Roche-Posay Redermic C for Oily/Combination Skin, because I bought it accidentally :), and it is a multi-tasker, being 5% L-AA + light moisture + primer
Sunscreen: Innisfree Eco Safety No Sebum Sunblock SPF 35 PA+++, because it was on sale, and it is a no-nonsense, REALLY NO SEBUM (best oil control ever), 100% physical sunscreen, corrects redness too.
Mizon “Original Skin Energy Placenta 45 Ampoule” Review
When I first saw this one, it brought the famous Biologique Recherche Placenta Serum to my mind, which is quite raved here and there, and is recommended for “skin with imperfections and/or seborrheic skin (aka me)”. Since I am not a petite Parisienne, it made quite sense to me to buy 10 foil samples of this Mizon ampoule for 2.80$, at Testerkorea.
Its ingredient list is not bad, and it is not bad itself either. In a standard, k-beauty routine, this one should be placed where you use an essence, because it is very very watery, and runny, unlike other Mizon products that come in dropper bottles. The ampoule looks and feels exactly like water, so once the product is poured out, you will have few seconds to put it on your face.
Most of the claims made for the benefits of applying placenta topically are not scientifically proven, but one can hope for some anti-oxidant, hydrating effect. I am not here to evaluate any possible effects, using this only for 10 days, but I can say that I liked its feeling on my oily, combination, dehydrated skin. It sinks in immeadiately after it is applied on the skin, no stickiness, fragrance or shine.
If you want to go for it, go for it. (What can I say more, these are micro reviews, anyway :)))
I ordered Skinfood Royal Honey Propolis essence in 10 samples from roseroseshop, along with the It’s Skin one, I reviewed on the previous post. In addition to 50% propolis and 10% honey extracts, this one has royal jelly extract. All these extracts, together with the hydrating beta glucan and anti-aging arginine in a fragrance free formulation was looking very promising.
You get pretty much from the sample sachets.
I used this too after toner, under Benton cream. The serum is hydrating, true, however it has a long-lasting stickiness. It forms a sticky film on face. That stickiness manifests itself also in some sort of glow, shine, or whatever you call it. But that was all I got. I have very oily skin, so I neither mind nor try to achieve glow/dewiness/shine. I just want to see some skincare benefits from a product. In other words, considering my hormonal breakouts, de-hydrated, dull complexion and rosecea-like redness, I expect, anti-inflammation, anti-redness and some pleasant hydration. Unfortunately both propolis products did not give me any of these.
Brightening due to photo enhancement, no propolis magic unfortunately
It's Skin Power 10 Formula Propolis Ampoule Review
I had to try some bee poo. It was meant to be, because propolis, honey extract, bee venom etc., they are all love children of k-beauty and bees. A very cheap option was the It’s Skin ampoule. This was a good option also for its ingredients list, since both honey and propolis extract sit at the very top.
I bought 20 sachets, along with tens of other product samples from roseroseshop. But a regular bottle of this product is as cheap as 8$ at testerkorea. I just did not want one more bottle sitting in some drawer, causing me guilt not using it, in case I wouldn’t like to. And I am glad that I don’t have the full size. Nothing exciting skincarewise, for the last 2-3 weeks in which I have been using this ampoule, after cleansing and toning, before Benton cream, in am.
Having antimicrobial properties, propolis and honey are suposed to help with inflammation, which did not occur in my case. Also despite niacinamide and glycerin, the ampoule was not hydrating. It was, however very lifting, temporarily. So it can still be a pick me up under makeup to awaken your face a bit. It does leave some shine, nothing to worry about even if you have oily skin, though. I am oily, and like it shiney, so whatever.
Buy it if you want a cheap dive into k-beauty kind of beehive. I will not repurchase, but it served well to my curiosity.
dailybridgerton
vaporwave
origamiaround
baratheonpilled
blakekathryn
titsay
stormborns
snowghoul
kianamaiart
kaledo-art