My first ever cushion! Laneige Pore Control BB Cushion Review

Some time ago the BB Creams market was hit by new type of product - BB cushion, a little sponge soaked in BB cream with specially designed applicator, hidden in handy compact. On the beginning I wasn't much interested in the idea, as I prefer to simply apply my make up with my fingers, also cushions are more expensive than the casual BB creams. Then I came across My Asian Skincare Story blog, also unofficially known as a "cushion blog" - thanks to reviews posted on this blog I finally decided to buy my first cushion.
I couldn't make my mind for a long time - there is so many cushions to choose from. My natural impulse would be to start off with something cheap, just to see if the whole "on the go" conception of the compact will suit me, but MASS blog was tempting me with middle range and higher end products. I was torn between three cushions: Iope Air Cushion - known as a "mother of BB cushions", so it just seems to be the right choice; VDL Beauty Metal Cushion - because MASS blog owner was recommending it as suitable for oily skin and Laneige Pore Control  - because if it there is "pore" in products name I automatically feel urge to have it ;) as you can see my "pore" obsession won and I bough Laneige cushion.

Product description: Matte version of Laneige BB cushion offering neat finish, without shine. Contains Pore Purifying Complex™, which purifies pores and helps to control secretion of sebum and Soft Focus Powder, which covers enlarged pores and uneven skin. Long-lasting make up without  turning dark or sticky feeling.

In the ingredients list we can find the Neem tree leaf extract, which has antibacterial properties, brightening arbutin and skin-normalising salicylic acid. The full list of ingredients you can find [here].

The cardboard box contains compact, leaflet and air tight packed additional refill for the compact. Single core of the cushion (refill) contains 15g of BB cream, so altogether we got 30g of foundation.
While unboxing my cushion I quickly understood what is that whole "cushion boom" about. The compact is just so damn pretty, so pretty I feel like buying another few and decor my house by just placing them here and there. Seriously, any room with this compact displayed gets +5 points to style.

In the compact I found the applicator sponge, all ready to use, settled on protective flap. Under the flap there is BB soaked-sponge, protected from drying out by special sticker.

The sponge seems very orange and rather dark, but the BB cream itself is very bright. There is four shades to choose from:  #13 True Beige, #14 Pink Beige, #21 Natural Beige, #23 Sand Beige. Usually I go for #21, but I've read that Laneige's cushions are quite dark, so I choose #13 in this case. It turned out that I made a good choice, it has nice light beige shade:

as you can see Laneige's #13 is darker than Missha's #13, but still brighter than Missha's #21. It also has different tone, not as grayish as Missha.

Now for the cushion itself. I must admit that I haven't read the description on the Laneige website before I bought the cushion, but I assumed that product offering pore control will be suitable for oily skin, since most oily skins have problems with enlarged pores. After checking the description for this review it turned out that my assumption was correct - product is designed for porous AND oily skin. But only in theory - in my opinion this product description is completely inaccurate.

First of all, this BB cream definitely isn't matte. Not even a little bit! It offers typical for BB creams dewy effect. I must say I'm not that surprised really, I already came across a few BB creams that were supposed to be matte, but they weren't. Normally I just apply a little bit of mattifying powder and life goes on, however with this product it's not that simple - Laneige doesn't like to be mattified. Any attempt to apply even a little bit of powder on top of Laneige ends up in an immediate cakey effect. In general this BB likes to roll up in wrinkles a little bit, but after any attempt of mattifying it my face seem to be consist of pores and wrinkles only. Yuck.

The other issue I got with this product is lasting or I should say a complete lack of lasting. It starts to cake after about 5 hours, after 8 hours what I got on my face is much closer to rice pudding or semolina than to a foundation. Moreover, it tends to slip off some places on my face and build up in others, creating spots and patches. The spots are not such a big deal, all you have to do is rub them with your finger to spread the foundation back again, but at work I don't have time to check myself in the mirror every 15 minutes, so I don't know for how long I've been looking like spotty cow in front of my customers and that annoys me to bit. First thing I thought that the fault of this foundation wearing so badly was my sunscreen - I already got one BB cream (Holika Holika) that is alright applied on bare skin, but turns into disaster applied on the top of the sunscreen, so the second time I skipped my sunscreen before the cushion. Unfortunately result was exactly the same. "What a dumb bitch I am" - I thought to myself, since I haven't done my microdermabrasion treatment for a long time, so my face was a dead skin cell cemetery, no wonder then that the foundation looks cakey. I've done my microdermabrasion and the next day applied my cushion with expectations raised. No luck again - although I do think it caked a little bit less, still my makeup was in unacceptable state after 8 hours. Oh well, I thought, maybe it's one of those BB's that can't be without primer. So on the day four, I applied it on the top of Innisfree No Sebum Primer (review coming soon) - cake, again! I blamed the Innsifree this time, in general this primer is a little bit weird, so I thought that it was the primer that spoiled my makeup this time. On the day 5 I used Laneige Skin Veil base, now this time it has to work... Nope. Cake and spots were laughing at me in the mirror. On the day 6 I finally admitted that I won't make friends with this cushion, no matter how hard I try.

In my opinion, against the manufacturer statements, this cushion is definitely not suitable for oily skin and I got a feeling that on other skin type it could perform better. It looks nice for some time after application, the colour is just lovely. The coverage is just about right, evens out the skin tone and cover some imperfections and blackheads, but looks natural. It's buildable if we need more coverage and lightweight, you won't feel it on your face. The application itself is quick and easy, although some areas are tricky to reach, like the "corner" between your nose and cheek. It has high SPF 50 PA+++, but bear in mind that you don't apply enough of it to achieve true SPF50 protection, so separate sunscreen is advisable.

Price: £23-28 on e-Bay, I bought if for approx. £23 on Tester Korea.

Pros:
+ nice shade
+ coverage is perfect, evens out skin tone, but doesn't create mask-like effect and looks natural
+ gorgeous, pretty, fabulous packaging
+ easy and quick application
+ high SPF50 PA+++
+ compact is suitable for other Amore Pacific cushion refills, like Iope or Hera

Cons:
- rolls up in winkles
- doesn't last for long, gets cakey and patchy
- no promised by manufacturer sebum control
- against manufacturer description it's not matte
- any attempt to mattify it with powder makes it look very cakey and ugly

Summary
There is quite a lot of positive reviews about this product in the Internet and I don't think it's utterly useless, I think it's just nor for me. I regret buying it, mostly because it's not cheap, actually is the most expensive BB I've bought so far. Yes, it is pretty and handy, but I don't fancy paying double or triple the price of normal BB just for the pretty packaging. For comparison, one of my favourite BB - Tony Moly Dear Me Petite Cotton costs only £5 and lasts on my face for the whole day. I don't like wastage, so I'm not gonna throw the cushion away, I will use up the current refill for some quick go outs, when I will be able to get back home before it gets all cakey and patchy. But I won't attempt trying to use the second refill, so I have send it to someone else. We shall see how dry skinned person finds it :)

Secret Key Snail+EGF Repairing Eye Cream

Pink Ninja loves good eye cream. Actually the eye cream was my first "serious" cosmetic product, I started using one when I was 15 years old, looking for some solution to my dark circles. Quickly I become addicted to the nice shooting feeling of the eye cream around my eyes and since I felt in love with Secret Key snail products, I couldn't pass the opportunity to check this product out.

Product description: Snail mucus and EGF ingredient helps skin elasticity and increase moisturising power to create healthy skin. Creates elastic and vibrant skin around eyes as it absorbs quickly into sensitive eye area.

Main ingredients:

• Snail secretion filtrate - protects skin from infection, reduces inflammation, effective in treating acne and scarring, anti-wrinkle
• Human Oilgo Peptide-1 (EGF) - known as a "beauty factor" - eliminating scars and speckles by improving the texture and condition of the skin, anti-wrinkle by rejuvenating skin by stimulating cell proliferation 
• Arbutin - skin lightening
• Adenosine - helps prevent wrinkles, reduces UVB sun damage, increases the production of elastin and collagen reducing skin saginess and improving tone
• Beta glucan - a natural compound extracted from plants, that helps to maintain a youthful appearance for skin
• Macadamia Seed Oil - contains Palmitoleic acid that is vital for delaying skin and cell ageing, Oleic acid that has regeneration and moisturising properties, Linoleic acid that helps to prevent skin water loss and Plant phytosterols that are calming and healing
• Niacinamide (Vitamin B3) - offers multiple benefits for ageing skin- can improve skin's elasticity, enhance skin's barrier function, help erase discolourations, and revive skin's healthy tone and texture.
• Squalane (or Squalene)- natural organic compound obtained from shark liver oil or olive oil (this cream uses olive oil one). It’s an antioxidant-rich, age-fighting emollient, that over time can reduce wrinkles, eliminate scars, reverse UV damage, lighten freckles and erase skin pigmentation.
• Jojoba seed oil - it's a unique kind of oil, that has no greasy feel to it, does not have any large amounts of the fatty acids and has no cholesterol. Jojoba oil is used to treat various skin diseases and the prevention of facial and neck wrinkles.

Product arrives in cardboard box, inside we will find 30ml tube. Tube is secured from the bottom with a bit of foil. I have aways problem with thinking in capacities, so I was well surprised with how bit the tube was (almost as long as my palm), however it's not entirely full, I would say that 1/4 of the tube is empty. The tube is opaque, but if I direct it to some source of light I can easily see how much cream is there.

Cream has very light consistency. It spreads easily on the skin and absorbs quickly. There is only a tiny amount needed to cover whole eye area - I use it since mid June and still got half of the tube. What I like most about this product is that even tough is light it's still very nourishing and moisturising. It's lighter than Skin Food Salmon Eye Cream but as much nutritious. Thanks to quick absorbency it's perfect for the AM use, I don't have to wait long to apply my make up. Cream has very subtle floral scent, hardly noticeable.

Price: from £6 on e-Bay.

Pros:
+ lightweight
+ quickly absorbing
+ well moisturising
+ brightens up eye area
+ generous capacity = good value for money

Cons:
NONE!

After two months of use skin around my eyes feel great. It's soft, supple and brighten. I also think my "smiling wrinkle" under the eyes improved. I am very pleased with this product :)

Double Review: Secret Key Snail+EGF Prestige Ampoule & Prestige Repairing Cream

I was looking for some Snail products to help my skin heal my acne scars. While I was browsing my favourite e-Bay seller's shop I came across the Secret Key - it was affordable and I couldn't find any reviews about the cream, so I just decided to try it and make one myself ;)

 Snail+EGF Prestige Ampoule

Product description: Snail muscus filtrate acquired from nature keeps hydration and protects skin from outer harmful substances.
5 free system: no mineral oil, no benzophenone, no coloring, no animal oil, no animal test
 
Major ingredients:

• Arbutin - skin lightening
• Human Oilgo Peptide-1 (EGF) - known as a "beauty factor" - eliminating scars and speckles by improving the texture and condition of the skin, anti-wrinkle by rejuvenating skin by stimulating cell proliferation
• Adenosine - helps prevent wrinkles, reduces UVB sun damage, increases the production of elastin and collagen reducing skin sagginess and improving tone
• Snail Muscus Filtrate -  protects skin from infection, reduces inflammation, effective in treating acne and scarring, anti-wrinkle
• Imperata Cylindrica Root Extract - optimizes and reinforces collagen synthesis, rich in potassium and therefore regulates the intercellular pressure and retain the water content in the skin
• Viscum Album (Mistletoe) Leaf Extract - a powerful antioxidant 

The ampolue comes in a 30ml glass bottle with glass pipette applicator, packed in golden cardboard box. The packaging is quite simple yet elegant, making it look like a high end product.

The ampoule itself is a clear, runny liquid with nice, but very subtle smell, I literally have to stick my nose into the bottle to smell it. It's only a little bit sticky when we try it between two fingers and doesn't feel sticky on the face at all. It is very lightweight and well moisturising, absorbs into skin very quickly. I have an oily skin and this works well both as an only moisturiser and underneath some cream. I use it all over my face, including eye area and I noticed a big improvement in my skin, especially under my eyes. I have problem with bags under my eyes since like always, tear through is very visible. After approx. 3 weeks of using this under my eyes I noticed great improvement in my skin elasticity, skin is firmer, appearance of the tear through improved. Of course my bags didn't completely go away, but there is an improvement :)

Price: from £9 on e-Bay.

Pros:
+ lightweight
+ well moisturising
+ helps improve skin elasticity

Cons:
- the manufacturer doesn't say anywhere about how much snail muscus is actually in the product
- very opaque bottle, so we can't see how much of the product we got left

Snail + EGF Prestige Repairing Cream

Product description: Snail muscus filtrate acquired from nature keeps hydration and protects skin from outer harmful substances. Snail beauty ingredient penetrating through dermis, activating cell proliferation, reproducing damaged skin.
5 free system: no mineral oil, no benzophenone, no coloring, no animal oil, no animal test.

Key ingredients:

• Snail Secretion Filtrate - protects skin from infection, reduces inflammation, effective in treating acne and scarring, anti-wrinkle
• Human Oilgo Peptide-1 (EGF) - known as a "beauty factor" - eliminating scars and speckles by improving the texture and condition of the skin, anti-wrinkle by rejuvenating skin by stimulating cell proliferation
• Arbutin - skin lightening
• Adenosine - helps prevent wrinkles, reduces UVB sun damage, increases the production of elastin and collagen reducing skin sagginess and improving tone
• Macadamia Seed Oil - contains Palmitoleic acid that is vital for delaying skin and cell aging, Oleic acid that has regeneration and moisturizing properties, Linoleic acid that helps to prevent skin water loss and Plant phytosterols that are calming and healing
• Birch sap - traditional herbal medicine that is antiseptic, anti-parasitic, anti-inflammatory
• Shea butter - helps with dry skin, eczema, skin problems; deep moisturizing, skin regeneration, skin healing properties.

Full ingredients: Purified water, Snail Secretion Filtrate, Macadamia Seed Oil, Cyclopentasiloxane, Dimethicone, Glycerin, Cetearyl Alcohol, Arbutin, Microcrystalline wax, Beeswax, Birch sap, Sodium Hyaluronate, Shea Butter, PEG-100 Stearate, Glyceryl Stearate, C14-22 Alcohol, C12-20 Alkyl Glucoside, Glyceryl Oleate, Polysorbate 60, Portulaca Oleracea Extract, Human Oligopeptide-1, Adenosine, Carbomer, Triethanolamine, Phenoxyethanol, Sodium Carbonate, Sodium Anisate, Disodium EDTA, Fragrance
Ingredients analysis [HERE]

  
 The cream comes in glass 50ml jar, packed in golden cardboard box. Packaging altogether is simple yet elegant, making it look like a high end product. I really like the lid of the jar, that is smooth and glossy on the top and rough and matte on the side, easy to grab and open. I know that a lot of people consider jar packaging as a unsanitary, but I like jars the most - I can always use up the whole product without the struggle. Just make sure you apply the cream with clean hands and you will be fine.

The cream has rich consistency and lovely smell, same like ampoule but much stronger - we can smell it immediately after opening the jar. Smell is hard to describe, it's a combination of floral and herbal notes, a little bit medicinal, but my nose likes it ;)
The cream is super moisturising, rich, but not oily. I have an oily skin and rather use it at nightime, but I used it couple of times in the morning and it was fine, I just had to be careful with amount used. I think people with normal/dry skin could easily use it both AM & PM.
As for the performance - this cream is my cosmetical discovery of the year. The first effects I noticed were after a week of PM use, on my neck & neckline. I have sensitive skin and skin allergy that makes my whole upper body dry and itchy. I am taking antihistamine, that helped a lot, but my neck and neckline were still very dry, after every shower I was literally runing from the bathroom to the bedroom to apply some moisturiser on my itchy skin. After week of using this Repairing Cream my skin calmed down, became well moisturised and smooth again. I honestly can not belive how good my skin is - now I can even ocasionally skip my neck moisturising in the evening and it will be still good in the morning. Miracle! I also notice improvement on my face, skin is smooth and well moisturised, no breakouts at all. My acne scars are still there, but I realize that I will take a long time for them to fade - that's just the nature of the acne scars.

Price: from £8 on e-Bay.

Pros:
+ well moisturising
+ rich, but not greasy and not sticky
+ skin is so nice and smooth after it
+ lovely smell
+ a little goes a long way

Cons:
- for AM us on an oily skin I would recommend very little amount or just use some lighter product
- the manufacturer doesn't say how much of the snail secretion filtrate actually is in the product (in opposite to for example Mizon, where we can find percentage on the label)

Summing up: I really liked both of the products. I also use Secret Key Snail + EFG Cleansing Foam (review yet to come) and Secret Key Snail Repairing Gel, so I use ampoule + gel in the morning and foam + ampoule + cream in the evening. After couple of uses I noticed improvement in my skin moisture level, after couple of weeks elasticity of my skin improved. They are definitely good value for money - after I used them up I am planning to buy them again at least once, to see what they can do during long time use. I would strongly recommend them to anyone :)

Rohto Hada Labo Arbutin Whitening Shirojyun Lotion

Hello ^^
Today I would like to review for you my first Japanese product: Hada Labo lotion. Hada Labo products have great opinion across many reviewers and are well know to everyone interested in Asian skin care products.
Hada Labo products are available on-line on e-Bay and Amazon, however be careful as many of them are offered by sellers from Thailand. As I said in my What you should be careful about when buying on e-Bay post, I always make sure I buy cosmetics from country of origin. With that particular product I've been lucky, as one of my colleagues was on holidays in Japan and kindly agreed to buy Hada Labo for me :) He said that Hada Labo lotions are so popular that they can be bought basically everywhere, not only in drugstores, but in places like railway stations as well! 

Product description: Fulfil your dreams of a white, perfect skin with Hada Labo Arbutin Whitening range that contains Arbutin to help fight dark spots and brighten up skin tone. Also contains Vitamin C to enhance skin fairness and reawaken dull skin caused by exposure to UV rays.

Hyaluronic Acid is a powerful anti aging ingredient in skin care. It is naturally occurring in the skin, but as we get older it's level decrease causing our skin to age and sag. It has ability to absorb water up to 1000 times its weight, what makes it one of the best moisturising substances known. Arbutin brightens up skin tone and Vitamin C

protects skin cells and skin's support structure from UV-related damage, improve the appearance of sun-damaged skin, reduce inflammation and promote collagen production. 

How to use: Use twice a day after cleansing face. Apply on palms and gently pat onto skin until thoroughly absorbed.



The lotion comes in 170ml plastic bottle. It doesn't have any other external packaging, the top of bottle is thermally wrapped in plastic.

The lotion has very watery consistency, whitish colour & subtle, hard to describe scent. I must admit that I find application a bit problematic, I'm very clumsy and always spill a little :P But even though I waste some of it one the floor, the product is very efficient. I use if from over a month and used up only 1/4 of the bottle.

Tapping lotion in the skin brings an immediate relief to skin dried out after cleansing. Depending on how much you use the application may take longer - on the beginning I was using too much and had to pat my face for a while. The amount shown on the picture is just about right for me - moisturises well whole face, I have to pat for a moment, but not too long. Straight after application skin is a bit sticky (both face & hands), but this feeling fades away after a moment or as soon as we top it up with another product.
What I really like about this lotion is the weightless feeling of ultimate moisture. Before I started using light moisturising essences like that (I was using Missha First Treatment Essence before Hada Labo) I often had problem with dehydrated skin - in the middle of the day under the sebum (I have oily skin) I would feel that my skin is tense, dehydrated. With Hada Labo I don't have this problem any more.
As for it's whitening properties - I definitely can see improvement in my skin, my acne scars faded. It's not a dramatic change and it takes a while to notice it - if I would use other products from line it would probably be more significant.

Price: from £13 on e-Bay (incl. postage), my friend payed for it in Japan approx. £8.

Pros:
+  moisturise skin
+ weightless
+ it does brightens a little
+ a little goes a long way

Cons:
- easy to spill during application
- a bit sticky after application

In general I'm really pleased with this product. Even if it wouldn't brighten my skin I would still be happy with it, thanks to it's moisturising properties. I am tempted to try other Hada Labo products :)

Ingredients: Water, Butylene Glycol, Glycerin, Arbutin, Sorbitol, PPG-10 Methyl Glucose Ester, Methylparaben, Disodium Succinate, Styrene/VP Copolymer, Sodium Hyaluronate, Succinic Acid, Magnesium Ascorbyl Phosphate, Hydrolyzed Hyaluronic Acid

Hada Labo Lotion is available in three versions: original Hyaluronic Acid one (white), whitening one with arbutin (blue one, my choice) and anti-ageing one with Retinol (red). In general all of them contains Hyaluronic Acid, so all of them are good for giving your skin extra moisture :)

Skin79 Hot Pink Super Plus BB Cream Review

Hello after longer break! I needed Christmas Holiday to catch my breath and find some time to write reviews. Fortunately there was no break from testing products, however after writing break I forgot some things I was meant to write =.=

Today I am going to review very popular BB Cream, considered to be classic.

Product description: Our lightweight BB Cream readily absorbs to skin, hydrating to reveal a healthy looking, fresh and natural looking hint of color. With added sunscreen, the formula protects form the sun's UV rays SPF25/PA++, while promoting whitening, wrinkle care and sebum control effects.

Full size product is a cylinder shaped bottle with pump containing 40g of product. There is also a travel version available, 15g, also with pump. I was testing out 2g sample which lasted for three applications.

When I opened sample colour of the product seemed to be very greyish, however after application it seemed to match well my complexion. This product has only one shade, different shades are in different coloured bottles and have slighttly different features. The consistency is fine, not too rare and not too thick. It creates smudges during application, but I was applying with my fingers and a few pats sorted it out. Hot Pink offers quite good cover (covers blackheads and evens skin tone), but still looks natural. As a classic BB cream it gives skin quite sharp glow effect - it looks nice and fresh around eyes, although I wouldn't leave the house without some mattyfier on my nose ;) Product has pleasant scent, a bit soapy, but in a nice way, fresh. I surprised my nicely with sebum control - my oily skin stayed fresh for 4 hours. My skin is a bit dried out recently, so I think I owe that sebum control to the moisturising properties of this BB Cream.

Price: from £7 on e-Bay (for 40g version).

Pros:
+ covers imperfections and still looks natural
+ moisturises
+ looks good on skin all day long
+ controls sebum

Cons:
- a lot of fakes in the market...

Overall this is quite decent BB Cream, however I won't buy a full size version. Because of it's popularity there is a lot of fakes in the market - you can find a lot of advices across the Internet, how to tell if it's genuine product, but a lot of bloggers warn that fakes are looking more and more genuine now. To be perfectly honest I can't even guarantee my sample was genuine 0o

Ingredients: Water, Propylene Glycol, Cyclomethicone, Dimethicone, titanium Dioxide, IsopropylPalmitate, Talc, Butylene Glycol Dicaprylate/Dicaprate, Ethylhexyl Methoxycinnamate, Dipentaerythrityl Hexahydroxtstearate/Hexastearate/Hexarosinate, Cetyl PEG/PPG-10/1 Dimethicone, Prunus Amygdalus Dulcis (Sweet Almond) Oil, Arbutin, Ethylhexyl Salicylate, Zinc Oxide, Magnesium Sulfate, Polyglyceryl-4 Isostearate, Adenosine, Camellia Sinensis Leaf Extract, Madecassoside, Aloe Barbadensis Leaf Juice, Nelumbo Nucifera Flower Water, Triclosan, Ceramide 3, Cholesterol, Lycium Chinese Fruit Extract, Helianthus annus (Sunflower) Extract, Cornus Offincinalis Fruit extract, Hedera Helix (Ivy) Extract, Schizandra Chinensis Fruit Extract, Dimethicone/vinyl Dimethicone Crosspolymer, Silica, Vinyl Dimethicone/Methicone Silsesquioxane Crosspolymer, Portulaca Oleracea Extract, Poper Methysticum Leaf/roqt/Stem Extract, Disteardimonium Hectorite, Trihydroxystearin, Glycosyl Trehalose, Aluminum Hydroxide, Alumnium Stearate, Hydrogenated Starch Hydrolysate, Methicone, Tobopheryl Acetate, Glycerin, Caprylic/Capric Triglyceride, Ubiquinone, Hydrogenated Lecithin, Phytic Acid, BHT, Fragrance, Phenoxyethanol, Propylparaben, Methylparaben, Butylparaben, Iron Oxides

Tony Moly Dear Me Petite Cotton BB Cream

Hi there :)
From time to time when I'm making order on e-Bay I like to add some product spontaneously, without making wide research about it. This time I decided to get BB Cream form Tony Moly, it was cheap enough to take risk.

Description: This BB Cream makes your skin baby-soft as it adheres lightly to your skin and gives your skin flawless finish. It delivers appropriate makeup coverage to your skin, without leaving an oily residue behind. SPF 30 PA++

Cream contains few skin beneficial ingredients:

• Arbutin - an active ingredient brightening up skin, used to treat hyperpigmentation caused by acne, allergies, infections, scars etc. It's also a natural filter against UV radiation (types A, B, C).
• Silica - skin mattifying
• Portulaca Oleracea Extract (also known as wild portulaca or pigweed) - has many benefits on skin: soothing effect, accelerating healing process, improving skin's elasticity. As a natural source of vitamins A, C and E and the co-enzyme Q10, is an excellent antioxidant, fighting premature ageing and protecting skin from environmental damage
• Witch hazel extract - a strong astringent & antioxidant, has antibacterial & anti-inflammatory properties, effective in acne treatments
• Adenosine - helps prevent wrinkles, reduces UVB sun damage, increases the production of elastin and collagen reducing skin sogginess and improving tone
• Hyaluronic Acid - is a powerful anti ageing ingredient in skin care. It is naturally occurring in the skin, but as we get older it's level decrease causing our skin to age and sag. It has ability to absorb water up to 1000 times its weight, what makes it one of the best moisturising substances known.
• Centella Asiatica (also known as Gotu Kola) - an effective anti-photo ageing agent, mainly due to enhancement of collagen, which amount in skin decreases with age. Listed in Indian Ayurvedic medicine to combat excessively dry skin. Has anti-inflammatory properties, suitable for sensitive skin.

 Altought most of this good ingredients is at the end of the ingredients list, which means it doesn't contain much of them.

 
Full list of ingredients: Water, Cyclotetrasilxane, Ethylhexyl Methoxycinnamate, Cyclohexasiloxane, Titanium Dioxide, Butylene Glycol, Cyclomethicone, Cyclopentasiloxane, Zinc Oxide, Cetyl PEG/PPG-10/1Dimethicone, Sorbitan Sesquioleate, Arbutin, Hexyl Laurate, Polymethyl Methylmethacrylate, Polygryceryl-2 Triisostearate, Bees Wax, Dimethiconecopolypol, Sodium Chloride, Cl 77492, Magnesium Aluminium Silicate, Disteardimonium Hectorite, Dimethicone/Vinyl Dimethicone Crosspolymer, Silica, Aluminium Portulaca Oleracea Extract, Hamamelis Virginiana (Witch Hazel) Bark/Leaf/Twig Extract, Adenosine, Triethoxycaprylylsilane, Sodium Hialuronate, Centella Asiatica Extract.

 

The product comes up in soft squeezy type tube with 30g capacity. It has only one shade: #1 Cotton Beige, what worried me a little bit on the beginning - fortunately colour matched my skin perfectly. 

This cream have great consistency - not too rare and not too thick, it's easy to apply in every way - I tried with my fingers, foundation brush & make up sponge, and they all worked same good. What surprised me most is that it doesn't smudge during application, like some BB creams do - you don't have to pat it into skin, you can just spread it on you face, same way you would spread moisturiser. Thanks to that application can be done really quickly, so I always use it when I am in hurry. It gives medium coverage, evens skin tone, reduces redness and subtly covers scars, managing to look natural & fresh at the same time. It doesn't roll up in wrinkles and doesn't makes dry patches very visible, what is a huge advantage for me (my skin is often dry and flaky in some places because of medical cream I use for my acne). It gives you typical for BB Creams glow effect, I'm mattyfing it gently with powder. My face becomes oily after 2-3 hours, which is a standard time for me. It's basically unscented.

Price: £4-6 on e-Bay.

Pros:
+ perfect consistency; not too rare, not too thick
+ doesn't smudge during application
+ doesn't roll up in wrinkles
+ colour matched my complexion well
+ covers good enough and still loos natural
+ cheap

Cons:
None so far :)

At the moment it's my favourite BB Cream :) However I am not using it every day (daily I am checking out different samples) because it's so good I am saving it for moments when I am in hurry and/or I want to be sure that my skin looks good. I strongly recommend this product and even if you won't like it, you won't loose much - you just simply can't go wrong with four pound ;)

Skin Food Tomato Whitening Toner & Serum

Hello! :)
Today I will tell you about products, which is are my No.1 skin care at the moment <3

Skin Food Tomato Whitening Toner

Description: This skin-brightening toner containing arbutin and tomato extract rich in lycopene, vitamins, and minerals makes dull skin clear and blemish-free, improving skin tone.

Key ingredients:

• Arbutin - an active ingredient brightening up skin, used to treat hyperpigmentation caused by acne, allergies, infections, scars etc. It's also a natural filter against UV radiation (types A, B, C).
• Sodium Hyaluronate (sodium salt of hyaluronic acid) - is a powerful anti aging ingredient in skin care. It is naturally occurring in the skin, but as we get older it's level decrease causing our skin to age and sag. It has ability to absorb water up to 1000 times its weight, what makes it one of the best moisturising substances known.
• Aminoacids: Alanine, Proline, Serine, Threonine, Glycine, Arganine, Lysine - moisturising and nourishing skin
• Tomato extract - rich in lycopene and vitamin C. Lycopene is natural colourant occuring in red-coloured fruits and vegetables; one of the strongest antioxidants - protects skin cells from premature aging. Vitamin C protect skin cells and skin's support structure from UV-related damage, improve the appearance of sun-damaged skin, reduce inflammation and promote collagen production. 
• Konjac root extract - Kojac has many healthcare benefits and has been used in traditional Chinese medicine for detoxification, tumour-suppression, blood stasis alleviation and phlegm liquefaction. Root extract is rich in Glucomannan, that can support skin healing process.
• Pomegranate fruit extract - incredible antioxidant, has anti-microbial, anti-inflammatory and anti-aging properties and ability to encourage radiant skin. It can help with a number of skin care issues including dry skin, age spots, hyperpigmentation, acne flare-ups and acne scars.

Full list of ingredients: WATER, ALCOHOL, GLYCERIN, ARBUTIN, PROPYLENE GLYCOL, PEG/PPG-17/6, COPYLOMER, PEG-60, HYDROGENATED CASTOR OIL, HYDROGENATED LECITHIN, BUTYLENE GLYCOL, BETAINE, SODIUM HYALURONATE, SORBITOL, ALANINE, PROLINE, SERINE, THREONINE, GLYCINE, ARGININE, LYSINE, GLUTAMIC ACID, SODIUM PCA, DIETHOXYETHYL SUCCINATE, BETA-GLUCAN, SODIUM CITRATE, TOCOPHERYL ACETATE, CAPRYLICYC/CAPRIC TRIGLYCERIDE, DIACETYL BOLDINE, SOLANUM LYCOPERSICIUM (TOMATO) FRUIT/LEAF/STEM EXTRACT, AMORPHOPHALLUS KONJAC ROOT EXTRACT, PUNICA GRANATUM FRUIT EXTRACT, CHAENOMELES SINENSIS FRUIT EXTRACT, DISODIUM EDTA, METHYLPARABEN, PHENOXYMETHANOL, CI 15985, PARFUM 

Toner comes in 135ml glass bottle. Under the cap it also got plastic blocker with small hole in the middle - it prevent's from spilling the product, you can turn the bottle upside down and only one drop will come out, so you need to shake it to get out more on your cotton pad. It was a little annoying on the beginning, but now I used to it - and considering how clumsy I am it's actually doing a good job.
Toner does contain alcohol, however dosn't smell with it, which is good. It has very nice, cosmetic scent, a little floral I would say, however nothing tomato-like ;) The consistency - to my surprise - seems to be a little bit more thicker than typical watery one I used to with toner. But difference is slightly noticable.
What I really like in this product is, that even though it contains alcohol, it doesn't dry my skin. Usually after face wash my skin feels a little bit dry and tight and some toner are making this feeling worse - this one dosn't.
As for whitening properties I am unable to judge it separately, as I purchaed it after serum.... I will sum them up together at the end of this note.

Price: £9-15 on e-Bay 
 
Skin Food Tomato Whitening Serum

Description: This skin-brightening essence containing arbutin and tomato extract rich in lycopene, vitamins, and minerals makes dull skin clear and blemish-free and improves skin tone, without stickiness. 

Key ingredients:

• Arbutin - an active ingredient brightening up skin, used to treat hyperpigmentation caused by acne, allergies, infections, scars etc. It's also a natural filter against UV radiation (types A, B, C).
• Tomato extract - rich in lycopene and vitamin C. Lycopene is natural colourant occuring in red-coloured fruits and vegetables; one of the strongest antioxidants - protects skin cells from premature aging. Vitamin C protect skin cells and skin's support structure from UV-related damage, improve the appearance of sun-damaged skin, reduce inflammation and promote collagen production. 
• Pomegranate fruit extract - incredible antioxidant, has anti-microbial, anti-inflammatory and anti-aging properties and ability to encourage radiant skin. It can help with a number of skin care issues including dry skin, age spots, hyperpigmentation, acne flare-ups and acne scars.
• Honey extract - natural moisturising and nourishing extract. Honey has also anti-bacterial properties, may be used to reduce inflammation and aid in tissue health. Great for sensitive skin.

Full list of ingredients: WATER, GLYCERETH-26, ISOHEXADECANE, ARBUTIN, SOLANUM LYCOPERSICUM (TOMATO) FRUIT/LEAF/STEM EXTRACT, ISOSTEARYL NEOPENTANOATE, DIETHOXYETHYL SUCCINATE, BIS-PEG-18 METHYL ETHER DIMETHYL SILANE, SODIUM ACRYLATE/SODIUM ACRYLOYLDIMETHYL TAURATE COPOLYMER, POLYSORBATE 80, C14-22 ALCOHOLS, C12-20 ALKYL GLUCOSIDE, STEARIC ACID, HYDROGENATED LECITHIN, GLYCERYL STEARATE SE, CETEARYL ALCOHOL, PUNICA GRANATUM EXTRACT, HONEY EXTRACT, HYDROXYETHYL UREA, CHAENOMELES SINENSIS FRUIT EXTRACT, BUTYLENE GLYCOL, ALCOHOL DENAT., DIACETYL BOLDINE, ARGININE, CARBOMER, CAPRYLIC/CAPRIC TRIGLYCERIDE, DISODIUM EDTA, TOCOPHERYL ACETATE, METHYLPARABEN, PROPYLPARABEN, PHENOXYETHANOL, FRAGRANCE
  
Product comes in white plastic bottle with pump. It doesn't have any extra packaging (like box), comes just thermo-wrapped in transparent foil.

The serum itself is quite rare, lightweight, white-ish cream.  The scent is similar as in toner - floral and not tomato at all ;) It absorbs in skin quickly and completly - dosn't leave any film. A little goes a long way - one "pump" in enough to cover whole face, for night time I use two.

On this picture I was trying to show you how full bottle is - when I opened it first time it was full up to the bottle thread. Now, after two months of constant use, I can't see exactly how full botte is, but I didn't use up even a 1/3 of it...

Now the best part - effects. I started using this product before I created this blog, so I can't really show you any "before" and "after" photos, but belive me - it does work. My skin is nicely moisturised, well conditioned, face is a bit brighter and my acne scars are less noticable. Name of the product may be a little confusing, as it's not really whitening but brightening in delicate, beautiful way - so don't worry, there won't be any "Twilight" effect :P It's also very light on skin - dosn't make my skin more oily, neither block my pores. Effects pleased me enough, to buy the toner, which I started using approx. month after serum.

I must say, that since started using both product together I didn't actually notice any more bightening. What serum did, was brightening my skin to certain level and then just keep it. It doesn't displease me, because if it would brighten more and more I would end up completly snow white and I don't think it would look healthy...

Price: £9-11 on e-Bay

Pros:
+ serum is moisturising
+ serum is lightweight
+ little bit of serum goes a long way
+ toner doesn't dry out skin
+ serum is good priced comparing to how efficient it is

Cons:
- toner is using up quicker than serum - I am sure one bottle of toner won't be enough for one bottle of serum
- toner is quite pricey for how efficient it is

Overall, if you would like to brighten up your skin tone a little bit I can strongly recommend this products. However, if you want to cut off costs a little bit, I think that serum on it's own will do fine...

What are BB Creams? Missha M Perfect Cover BB Cream Review.

Hello :)
For a good start I would like to introduce you to probably the most populat asian beauty care product - BB Cream.

What is a BB Cream?

BB stands for Blemish Balm. It was first invated for people with post-surgery marks on their faces. Product was meant to hide imperfections and taking care of skin at the same time. Idea was catched by asian cosmetics companies and hit the market, quickly becoming a must-have. Asian beauty philosphy is slightly different from our European vision: in their view perfect skin is bright, clear, smooth and glowy. They don't value dark and tanned/bronzed skin like we do. According to that a lot of BB Creams comes in light shades with promise of lightening your skin tone and all of them are giving your skin glow effect* and thy always contain a SPF. BB Creams also always promise you care for your skin: according to what you need, you can find versions for moisture, oil control, acne prone skin, wrinkle care, pore tightening etc.They are also coming in various levels of coverage, however the main idea is to keep natural look.

* there are some matte versions available, however I find them still a little bit more glowy that European mattfying foundations. 

Missha M Perfect Cover BB Cream

The reason why I am starting with this particular review is because that was my first asian product ever. And I loved it! Also I think it's a great example of classic, asian BB cream.

Product Description: Missha M Perfect Cover BB Cream offers a novel skincare concept with BB cream, which lightens skin tone by healing visible wrinkles and blemishes with excellent skin-cover ability, and prevents skin aging through effective whitening and anti-wrinkle properties.

I've come along this product accidentaly - couldn't find the right foundation I just gave up make up completly. One day my friend told me about great effect the BB Cream gave her - didn't really know what is it, i just typed "BB Cream" on e-Bay and a lot of results came up with this particular brand. It was quite cheap so I decided to give it a go, as I wouldn't loose much in case it wouldn't work for me. I had to wait a while as it was shipped from Korea - around three weeks.
The product is avaiable in two sizes - 20ml trial size, which I ordered, coming up in squeezy tube. Full size version, 50 ml is tube with little pump.
I am quite pale person (my skin just don't do taning, and I don't like fake tan), so I usually pick up the brightest available versions of foundations/powders. This BB Cream is available in five shades - that's really a lot for BB cream, since most of them got one or two shades - from #13 Milky Beige to #31 Golden Beige. I went for a #13 of course and suprising discover that... it was too bright for me! Honestly, I never supposed it is possible. In general I don't use blusher, but with this BB I had to - otherwise you could take me for some Twilight parody character lol. Because of not matching shade I gave up on product quickly, until I oredered darker shade - #21 Light Beige. And this time it was perfect.

Now to the results: opposite to the name it doesn't give you the best cover in the world. But covers enough to hide blackheads and pores and it does beautiful job making your skin shade even (as an acne harassed person I got all shades of reds and purples on my face, so I know what I am talking about here :P). It makes skin looking smooth and give it a little, healthy glow. It has very nice cosmetical-flowery scent. The consistency is good for both hand and brush applications. However with BB Creams you must be aware of smudges - they will appear a lot - BB Cream likes to be delicately pated into skin. It makes your dry patches visible... but which colour-containing cosmetic doesn't? Fortunately it is not drying itself, I would even say it's moisturising. As for oil control - my skin becomes oily and shiny after 2-3 hours - but that's standart time for my extremally oily skin. Unfortunately this cream seems to dissapear from your face after approx. 6 hours, but at least it dissapears evenly, so you don't look patchy.
Contains high filters: SPF45 PA+++.

Price: between £4-6 for 20ml and £7-13 for 50ml on e-Bay.

Pros:
+ big choice of shades, which contains my perfect shade
+ lightweight and naturally looking
+ good priced
+ two sizes available
+ high SPF and PA filters

Cons:
- disappears after some time
- highlights dry areas
- rolls up a little bit in deeper wrinkles
- smudges during application

Summing up: it's not a perfect BB cream. But it is different than foundation, certainly worth trying. What I like most is that it's weightless - if you don't like to feel your make up on your face, you should give the BB Cream a go.

Ingerdients: Water(Aqua), Cyclomethicone, Ethylhexyl Methoxycinnamate, Zinc Oxide, Caprylic/Capric Triglyceride, Mineral Oil, Phenyl Trimethicone, Talc, Arbutin, Hydrolyzed Collagen, Dimethicone, Macadamia Ternifolia Seed Oil, Squalane, Adenosine, Cetyl PEG/PPG-10/1 Dimethicone, PEG-10 Dimethicone, Polyethylene, Beeswax(Cera Alba), Glycerin, Propylene Glycol, Caviar Extract, Algae Extract, Rosa Canina Fruit Oil, Simmondsia Chinensis (Jojoba) Seed Oil, Fagus Sylvatica Bud Extract, Ceramide 3, Rosmarinus Officinalis (Rosemary) Leaf Extract, Chamomilla Recutita (Matricaria) Flower Extract, Sodium Hyaluronate, Sodium Chloride, Fragrance(Parfum), Methylparaben, Propylparaben, Disodium EDTA, Hydroxyisohexyl 3-Cyclohexene Carboxaldehyde, Butylphenyl Methylpropional, Benzyl Salicylate, Hydroxycitronellal, Alpha-Isomethyl Ionone, Hexyl Cinnamal, Linalool, Citronellol
May contain: [+/-; Titanium Dioxide(CI 77891), Iron Oxides(CI 77491, CI 77492, CI 77499)]