Review: Missha Super Aqua Cell Renew Snail Hydro Gel Mask

This review today is on the Missha Super Aqua Cell Renew Snail Hydro Gel Mask!


 I've gotta admit it, I love snails. I like gel masks. You put them together and?! What more do I need to say, of course I had to try this!


Image: Missha Super Aqua Cell Renew Snail Hydro Gel Mask front
Credit: Self

Image: Back of the mask
Credit: Self



Ingredients: Water, Glycerin, Snail Slime Extract, Ceratonia Siliqua Gum, Carrageenan, Hydrolyzed Baobab Tree Extract, Lactobacillus Ferment, Scutellaria Baicalensis Extract, Green Tea Extract, Artemisia Princeps Leaf Extract, Houttuynia Cordata Extract, Citrus Junos Fruit Extract, Castor Seed Oil, 1,2-Hexanediol, Caprylyl Glycol , PEG-60 Hydrogenated Castor Oil, Dipotassium Glycyrrhizate , Portulaca Oleracea Extract, Methyl Paraben, Centella Asiatica Extract, Chamomile Flower/Leaf Extract, Disodium EDTA, Potassium Hydroxide, Sodium Hyaluronate, Phenoxy Ethanol, Propyl Paraben, Perfume

Several interesting items of note, especially in the first few.
Snail Slime Extract
Can't really be seen, but it is clearly stated on the back of the mask to contain 5% of this. Mmm. Snails.
Ceratonia Siliqua Gum
The ground seed of the fruit of the carob tree, Latin name Ceratonia siliqua. Used frequently as an adhesive and binder, I assume to control the viscosity of the gel mask.
Carrageenan
Derived from algae, they can be made to use agar. There seems to be quite a controversy about the safety of this ingredient in edible agar, but since this is a cosmetic gel I'm not going to be consuming, we don't need to care about that!
Baobab Tree Extract
Baobab refers to the tree genus Adansonia, of which there are 9 trees. Baobab has been tested to have high antioxidant content, even higher then the highly acclaimed orange! Antioxidants helps prevent cell damage and slows aging. However I am a bit sceptical as to how these antioxidants will actually penetrate into our skin...

Background

Name of mask: Missha Super Aqua Cell Renew Snail Hydro Gel Mask

About the company: The company Missha is a Korea road brand, which means that you can easily find stores selling this in the streets of Seoul. So far, reviews I find online shows that it is more popular for its point makeup then skincare. The Cell Renew Snail Line is an established product line of their company, and there are quite a few reviews of this online already, since Missha is considered a globalised brand.

Why I brought it: It was on sale and I couldn't resist! Normally it would retail for SGD$6 in Singapore, which was why I couldn't bring myself to purchase for something that was only one use.

Before usage

Appearance: The packaging is super nice and shiny! I'm a sucker for nice packaging really.

Image: The 3 layers of the mask
Credit: Self

Material: The mask comes in 2 sections (upper and lower), which had 3 pieces each. There is a opaque plastic sheet sandwiching the gel mask with a transparent plastic sheet. That's actually a lot of non-biodegradable waste...

The gel mask is much thinner then other gel masks I have used. The transparent gel is attached to a checkered wire gauze. REMEMBER: Give the mask a scratch near one the edges, and determine which side is the checkered wire side and which is the gel side! Put the correct gel side on your face!

Fragrance: A flowery smell when I first put the mask on, it dissipated easily.

Amount of serum: There were no claims of how many grams of serum this mask had, and it was not actually a lot.

Texture and colour of serum: Runny like water and clear.

During usage

Image: The mask on skin
Credit: Self

How it adheres to face: It fitted quite well, most likely because of the 2 sections. I really liked that most gel masks are cut in this way. The overlapping sections go well over each other.

Feeling: Even though I put on the Daiso Silicon Mask over it, the gel thinned very fast. It could be possible that it was due to the fact that it was already thinner then other gel masks when unused, but the speed at which it thinned was a bit disappointing.

Also strangely enough, despite the fact that I had pulled this out of the fridge, there wasn't much of a cooling effect to my skin.

After usage

Actually I did not like this much. I didn't feel any of the soothing cooling effect I like so much that a sheet mask normally brings, and this mask also did not make my skin feel more hydrated, smoother, nor brighter. It sort of feels like I wasted my time doing this, actually?

And I did double check that I had the gel side facing my face, so I don't know what happened here. Guess I know for now that not all gel masks are wonderful.

Rating: 2/5

Rating scale:

1 – I'm not looking to spoil my skin. Rarrr.

2 – It wasn't bad, but neither was it good. I won't use this unless I have to.

3 – Mmm... I'm sure I an find better quality.

4 – Quite good! Would use again!

5 – The best. This will always be in my stash unless it's discontinued.

Repurchase: No. Never.

 

Review: Petitfee Black Pearl and Gold Hydrogel Eye Patch

Today is going to be a review on the Petitfee Black Pearl and Gold Hydrogel Eye Patch!

I started becoming concerned about dark eye circles when I started wearing contact lenses. Previously, I had been wearing full frame spectacles that covered my under eye area, and as I have a habit of wearing my spectacles almost all the time I am awoke, I had never actually looked closely at my under eye bags until then. My friends who know of my obsession with skincare had asked me for any tips and/or products to help with their eye bags, but I was unable to give them good advice because I thought I didn't have any. Oh was I wrong.

After starting wearing contact lenses, I started noticing much more about my eyes then I had not before. For example, that my double eyelids were parallel, my eyelashes were not that short, that my irises were actually at least 3 different shades of colours, and of course... that I actually had pretty severe eye bags.

Image: Difference between tapered and parallel double eyelids
Credit: Here

I could go on a whole new topic of how parallel double eyelids are more prevalent in Caucasians and tapered double eyelids are more prevalent in Asians, or my own theory of the length of eyelashes in different races, as well as a spiel about the many pretty colours I discovered in my eye. But that's not what you are here for, so let me spare you all that and get to the meat of the matter.

Image: the box of the Petitfee Black Pearl and Gold Hydrogel Eye Patch
Credit: Self

Introducing our Guest of Honour for this evening - the Petitfee Black Pearl and Gold Hydrogel Eye Patch!



I came up with a new list of criteria for mask reviews, which is what I will be using in the future so as to make reviews easily comparable.

Background

Name of mask: Petitfee Black Pearl and Gold Hydrogel Eye Patch

About the company: The company name is Petitfee, and they have two lines of products, the namesake Petitfee and the sister brand Koelf. When looking for tubs of eye masks, I have found that there are only 3 Korean brands readily available to the international market, and they are Petitfee, Koelf and SNP (under the company SNP).

Why I brought it: My previous choice of eyepatches was the Etude House Collagen Eye Patch, but I stopped buying them after a few purchases. Why? For one thing, they come individually wrapped with 2 patches (for each eye), both patches in a plastic mould designed to keep moisture in and with plastic mesh on the patches themselves. That’s a whole total waste of plastic!

The second consideration is because of cost. They are sold in Singapore Etude House for SGD$3 a packet. Eyepatches are an item that would be used frequently, so the costs would build up considerably! A month of daily usage would be $90 a month.

Image: Etude House Collagen Eye Patch - Please note the plastic moulds the eye patches come in
Credit: Etude House

Whilst looking for alternatives, I found an online promotion for Qoo10 in which the Petitfee Black Pearl and Gold Hydrogel Eye Patch would be sold for SGD$10~ including shipping! They also came in a tub of 60, or 30 pairs. This greatly minimizes packaging wastage, and the tub could be re-used after it is empty! I brought it and didn’t regret my choice at all o(-^_^-)o

Before usage

Image: Petitfee Black Pearl and Gold Hydrogel Eye Patch
Credit: Self

Appearance: It comes in a round tub, as seen above. It also comes with a flat spatula meant to lift each piece of the gel eye patches, and it does its job quite well. I don’t recommend using your fingers to pick up the eye patches, because other than the bacteria issue,  the gel patches are quite thick for gel masks, but still quite thin and a stray fingernail can easily pierce a hole through them.

Please note that the tub is sealed with aluminum , but since I forgot to take a picture I can’t show it. Tip: Don’t peel all of it off. Its best to keep it covering the top in order to prevent the gel patches from drying out.

Image: Petitfee Black Pearl and Gold Hydrogel Eye Patch - only 1 left in the tub!
Credit: Self

Material: Made of black gel with sparkles in the material. Shiiiiiiny. I like to tie up my hair into two buns, and pretend I’m a panda with those on.

Fragrance: An artificial floral smell that is not too strong.

Amount of serum: At first opening, there is quite a lot. It covers all 60 patches thinly. However the serum starts drying up after you first peel off the seal, so you would be lift with a strangely thick serum. The expiry date is 2 months from opening.

Texture and colour of serum: Colourless, and would drip rather then flow.

During

Feeling: It feels very nice and cooling. The surface area it covers is under and around my eye, as well as a small part of my cheek. I keep them on for as long as I can, or until they start to dry up and their thickness goes down.

After

After the first few usages, I could not see any visible improvements, though I could feel that the area was more moisturized and cooler.

However, after a few weeks of daily or once every 2 days usage, I was really surprised to see that my under eye circles had really lightened! There was a clearly visible difference between my before eye circles and after. Unfortunately, I don’t have any Before and After pictures of this huge change, and it’s not just because I don’t like to put my face on the internet.

However! I think part of this was because Petitfee had good ingredients, but a large part was because of frequent usage. Previously I would only use eyepatches about once a week, and sheet masks most of the time, because oh gosh those eye patches are way smaller than a sheet mask but costs double – but a sheet mask typically does not cover the eye area tightly. From once a week to nearly every day, the boost of hydration helped a lot.

Review: Tosowoong Rosehip Oil

My previous reviews were really patchy and each post had different quality. So I decided to start using a template I made myself!

Well that's enough of that, lets come to the real meat of the matter, which is the product I'm introducing today!

Background

Name of product: Tosowoong Nature Pure Rosehip Oil

Image: Tosowoong Nature Pure Rosehip Oil
Credits: Self

 

About the company: Tosowoong is a lesser known brand in Korean cosmetics, and their selling point is about proven beneficial ingredients from nature and simple formulation. Those are not uncommon selling points in skincare, but from other reviews so far, they seem to be keeping their promise! Their products are not very pretty (except for their latest release, the Hello Kitty Pore Brush), and they look more unisexual and functional then anything. They do have ‘special’ ingredients like camellia, sea cucumber and propolis, which really attracts me!

Why I brought it: Rosehip oil has been proven to have anti-oxidant and anti-inflammatory effects  (Source: Grajzer et al., 2015 and Chrubasik et al., 2008), and not yet proven-as-of-yet, anti-aging and scar lightening properties. Well, what really sold me was the fact that Miranda Kerr said that she use rosehip oil regularly for her face, and claims that its why her face is so smooth and bright.

Before usage

Appearance: It comes in a small dropper bottle. The dropper is easy to hold and use, each oil drop can be measured out easily.

Material: The bottle is made out of amber glass, which I prefer because it prevents any light sensitive component in the product from oxidizing due to light and thus reducing efficiency. According to the company, this is 100% rosehip oil, and I don’t think rosehip oil is reactive to light. Anyone can weigh in on this?

Fragrance: There is no fragrance I can detect.

Amount of serum: The stated amount is 10ml, and I find that usage of 2 drops every night can last me for about 3 months. My face is pretty big, but 2 drops is enough to smooth across the entire face.

Texture and colour of serum: Well… its oil? Its very… oily. How can oil not be oily? HAHAHA. (*≧▽≦)ﾉｼ))
It has a very slippery feel though, and after patting it into my hand or face, there will be a slight sheen no matter how long it has been. However this does not mean that it was not absorbed, on the contrary, I feel that application of this after my routine actually facilitates the other products to sink in better. I really like this benefit! The colour of the oil is slightly yellow, light enough that its transparent normally and the yellow colour can only be seen out of the bottle and under light.

After usage

Again, I really really like it. I find that no matter what products I use before the application of this oil, whether it be my lightest toner or my greasiest sleeping mask, this makes everything absorb better. No matter what product I use before, I always wakes up with my skin softer and brighter.
 
Due to this property, this oil can ALSO be used in the morning! I spread a drop of it over my face, apply sunblock, and I'm good to go! No extra greasiness other then what my oily skin would normally produce.

Etude House Pumpkin Carriage Cushion Case

Recently I was at Orchard, and of course the number one thing I would do whilst shopping is to check out Etude House flagship store! If you are ever in the area, I urge you to check it out. The princess theme is strong within the shop!

 

During my browsing's, my eye was drawn to a little box hidden away behind one of its fancy macaroon BB cushion displays. Upon enquiries with the staff, I was informed that it was actually the limited edition Pumpkin Carriage cushion case!

 



 

Image: The Etude House Pumpkin Carriage Cushion Case
Credits: Self

 I repeat, every time I have been to that store, I would look everything over in search of new products or sales, and I have never seen this before! As the sales assistant explained to me, this is a limited edition case launched only at their flag ship in Singapore, found nowhere else and was actually released a year ago.

I have looked at blogposts and press releases and the only thing I could find about this (disregarding all the search results that came up about the actual full-size pumpkin carriage they have at their store), and I could only find one mention about it on a blogpost by enabalista , which was far down the page and hidden among other photos. How could I not have seen this before?!

So, naturally, I brought it.

Image: Top of the Etude House Pumpkin Carriage Cushion Case
Credits: Self

 Even the box is pretty.

Image: The Etude House Pumpkin Carriage Cushion Case
Credits: Self

Image: The Etude House Pumpkin Carriage Cushion Case
Credits: Self

 When the sales assistant showed me the mirror inside, my wavering mind on whether or not to buy swung in the BUY direction. Look at that pattern! Only this cushion has print on the mirror!

However, this is a cushion case only. You have to buy the refill separately and put it in yourself.

Image: The Etude House Pumpkin Carriage Cushion Case and the Precious Mineral Any Cushion
Credits: Self

My completed case with the Precious Mineral Any Cushion on Magic Peach. It's gorgeous isn't it?

So now that you know about the existence of this cushion, what's your decision? (^o^)

October 2015 - Newly Released Products

October 2015 review

 

I like to browse the websites of brands I like to see what they have newly released. I posted this on reddit AsianBeauty recently so as to inform other users what are the newest products out so they can try them if they wish.

Korean Brands 

• Etude House:

Image: Etude House 10th Anniversary Cleansing Oil

Recently they have released a 10th anniversary Limited Collection. It looks to be just the changed packaging of their products, but look me in the eye and tell me the packaging is not totally precious.

• Enprani:

More famously known for their Dreams Come True Bounce Cheese Cream, their latest skincare offering is the Elastic Bandage Lifting Ampoule and Pack.


Image: Elastic Bandage Lifting Ampoule and Pack

I am not able to read hangul and thus cannot provide the full ingredient list, but the main highlights are Sodium Polystyrene Sulfonate (used to treat hyperkalemia - elevated potassium levels in blood stream), PLLA - Poly-L-Lactide Acid (a biodegradable plastic), BTX (a chemical mixture of benzene, toluene and xylene), as well as two other ingredients I am not sure of, but one appears to be spider silk.

This seems to a really weird mixture of ingredients and I am not sure I wish to try this...

• Innisfree:

The latest range they have is the Ginger Oil range. Consisting of 4 products, the skin, serum, rich serum and cream. It looks to be released for the upcoming Winter season and is meant to be very hydrating.

Still, ginger oil? Ginger has a very sharp taste in the mouth and I really cannot fathom how they would change that into something you would willingly put on your skin...

• Tony Moly:

They seem to have several new products out since the last time I looked!

 The Astroboy collection is basically a re-packaging of their existing products. Astroboy was created by Osamu Tezuka and is his most popular works. You can liken it to Batman for its popularity in Japan and many parts of Asia. I think this collection would be quite popular with adult collectors!

Image: Tony Moly Wonder Cheese Firming Cream

Another new range is their breakfast spreads line. Consisting of the Wonder Honey Moisture Cream, Wonder Butter Nutrition Cream and the Wonder Cheese Firming Cream, they are really similar to the breakfast spread I use everyday! Be careful not to eat them by mistake! I am personally buying the Wonder Cheese cream on Qoo10 myself. Look out for my upcoming review!

 They also have a re-formulation of a previous product, the Nutra Energy Dual Essence! Their R&D department must be run ragged from all those new products!

• Leaders

 I really like this brand for their masks. The masks are always full of essence any my facial skin is always so plump, smooth and moisturized after usage. I would like to try their other products too, but unfortunately expect for masks, their other products are near impossible to find in Singapore.

So what is new is the Dual Gel White Velvet mask, as well as the new Vitamino range. Can't wait until they hit the shores of Singapore!

They have also upgraded their whole Aquaringer line. I have the previous version Aquaringer cream, and I like it quite a lot so will see if I can get my hands on the new cream to try it out.

• Secret Key

They have this new cute cream out, the Ultra Knit Moisture Cream. From the description picture, it looks like the main ingredients silkworm cocoons, pine and olives.

• Holika Holika

They have both new makeup and new skincare out. Their new lipstick range, the Honeydew Tint Stick, which is not actually made with honeydew, but just plain old honey. I think there might have been a translation Oops! somewhere?

Image: Holika Holika Baby Pet Magic Mask Pack

They also have the Baby Pet Magic Mask Pack. This is super cuteeeeeeee. From an old animal to a baby one with lesser wrinkles!!! I really want to try this!

• Missha

They have a new coconut themed line out. It does look pretty cute, but I don't have very good experiences with Missha products so I don't think I will be purchasing them.

• Too Cool for School

They have a new pumpkin 24k gold mask which looks like it made as an alternative after their popular pumpkin sleeping mask.

As an aside, Too Cool for School Singapore has closed down after a year of operations. A bit sad to see them go, but the markup from Korean retail was really high!

• Belif

They have  a new cushion out, the Moisture Bomb Cushion. Belif's theme around bombs seems to be really working for them.

• Skinfood

They have upgraded their honey line to the Royal Honey range. Mmm, looks tasty...

Japan Brands 

• SKII

Image: SKII RNA Power Cream

They are upgrading the Stempower line to the RNA (Radical New Age) line! I found a blog post by theraeviewer about the changes.

• Pure Smile

In accordance with the new trend of printed face masks, Pure Smile is releasing their own range, printed like youkai faces!

Taiwan Brands

• Dr Wu

Dr Wu has released the new Ultra Moisture Treatment Oil with Squalene. Squalene seems popular nowadays! My Beauty Diary also has masks with this new ingredient.

• L'Herboflore

Image: L'Herboflore Essential Oils

L'Herboflore have a new essential oils range out. I am not sure, but I am leaning towards this being more for aromatherapy then for skincare.

They are famous for their gorgeous mask packaging, but their skincare packaging isn't bad either! The Flora line, consists of a crème and essence.


That's all I can find for the October winter releases! Anyone else feeling the urge to spend?? Till next time then!

Review: Vanedo Beauty Friends Mask in Aloe

When I made a haul off Qoo10 a few months back, I was pretty excited at having received a sheet mask and several other samples as freebies. Hey, free sheet mask! That's great right?

 

...

 

 

Not.

 

Introducing, the Vanedo Beauty Friends Mask in Aloe. To be frank, I have never heard of this brand before, but when I asked Yahoo-sensei about this, it seems to be a semi-known Korean brand with 25 varieties of sheet masks. It seems to be fairly cheap, with pretty lukewarm effects, but I won't be buying this brand.

 

Image: Vanedo Beauty Friends Mask in Aloe
Credits: Self

Ingredients here on an unaffiliated online shopping website.

Purified water, Glycerin, Butylene Glycol, Portulaca Oleracea Extract, Sodium Hyaluronate, Xanthan Gum, Diproplylene Glycol, Methylparaben, Phenoxyethanol, Carbomer, Triethanolamine, Aloe Barbadensis Leaf Extract, Fragrance

Why would I not be buying this again? Reasons include:

• Smell. I am not someone who is very sensitive to smells, I have never really understood why someone would get headaches from very strong smells. That is, to now. The instant I tore open the mask packaging, the smell hit me like a frying pan to the head. It is a mixture of alcohol, old-lady perfume and some chemical I cannot pinpoint. It is super strong and whilst not exactly nasty smelling, it is something that I could have gone without smelling ever.
• Safety. Because I am cheap, I decided to give it a chance. Taking a deep breath, I took the mask out of the packaging and started to unfold it when I noticed a speck of something brown. when I looked closer, it was an ant. A FRIGGING DEAD ANT WAS ON THE MASK! It could not have been contamination from my hands, because the dead ant was within the folds. Just how?? Factory problem, or did it get tore and an ant from my house crept inside the packaging?
• Effects. Because I like to gamble, I decided to flick off the ant and decided to slap the mask on my face anyway. I could only manage to withstand the mask for only 10 minutes before I took it off. The hydrating effects from this mask was minimal, and the smell lingered for a short while afterwards. I did not try and squeeze out the leftover essence within the mask.
• Size. Because I am picky, I just want to say - this mask is HUGE. Most of the other masks I have tried have not been good fits for my face, being normally too big, but the Vanedo Aloe mask could have fit 1 1/3 of my face area.

Like: It... was free? I'm glad I didn't waste my money on this.
Do not like: See the entire review. (*｀へ´*)

Rating: 1/5

Rating scale:

1 – I'm not looking to spoil my skin. Rarrr.

2 – It wasn't bad, but neither was it good. I won't use this unless I have to.

3 – Mmm... I'm sure I an find better quality.

4 – Quite good! Would use again!

5 – The best. This will always be in my stash unless it's discontinued.

Repurchase: No. Not ever unless there is a re-formulation.

Got praise today

Not much of a post today. Just wanted to say that I got a praise on my skin condition today which made me very happy.

My co-worker had evidently been under the impression that I have always been wearing a full layer of foundation to the office everyday, she was shocked when I told her I have not, and its my nude skin. She then praised me on my good skin condition, which made me super happy.

That may seem pretty shallow, but less then a year back, my skin was full of acne and old acne scars, nowadays I am working to control my acne and fade the scars, so I am really happy that my effort has been noticed.

To all those who randomly gives compliments to others, please keep up the good work! It may not mean much to you, but it means a lot to those who receives those compliments (❁´▽`❁)