Stores/Brands – Oh My Stellar!

Beauty, Reviews, Sponsor Post, Stores/Brands

Brand Spotlight: Bio Oil

13/06/2017 No Comments

There are some skincare products that are so effective and so simple that they become essentials in our day-to-day life: Bio Oil is very easily one of them. I used this magical oil back in my college years, after having read online about it’s benefits of healing scars (and stretch marks, but those were a happy discovery later on). I talked on Instagram about my previous experiences with this product but also stated that I didn’t want to go into personal details here on my blog, as I do believe in keeping this a happy space and letting the past be bygone, so I hope you’ll forgive me for not being too explicit! Regardless, I will do my best to discuss with you my experiences and opinions on this great product.

I was approached to do a brand spotlight write up about Bio Oil and I was really happy to do this, since this is something that I’ve used for quite a while and really believe in. I have also gotten my sister and her family onto using this oil for various needs too, so you can definitely believe that I’m not just writing this because I can.

So this product claims to improve the appearance of scarring, stretch marks and uneven skintone. It has won 27 skincare awards and has become the number one selling scar and stretch mark product in eleven countries since it was launched globally in 2002. I have personally never used it as regular skincare (such as for skin tone, anti-aging etc) so I can’t vouch for those properties, but I can say that this product was great for minimising scarring and in helping to lighten stretch marks.

All of what I write has to do with my personal experience with the product, but I have noticed online that there have been some mixed reviews and concerns. Some, such as myself, saw great results from using the product while others question many of the ingredients included in it. I have put in an external link at the end of the post for people who want to look into that.

Base Makeup, Beauty, Mascara, Reviews, Sponsor Post, Stores/Brands

Brand Spotlight: Genie Beauty

01/06/2017 No Comments

I have two places that I tend to work at – in an office, where I can spend up to seven or eight hours in front of my computer, or on location when I am shooting under various different weather conditions. I’m not someone who likes to go through my days bare faced though and base make up, eyeliner, blush and lip balm are my daily neccessities. For this reason, I’m always looking for products that have great longevity as well as look good on my skin. Wanting to put together a list of ‘office essentials’, I was recommended to try a collection of products from Genie Beauty – a brand that is sold via TVSN. After looking though the wide range of products that I offer, I decided to try out a few different things from them: a base powder, a colour correcting powder and two mascaras – which I had tested as a set.

A lot of Genie Beauty products are targeted towards a more mature audience, with a lot of anti-aging care, but this doesn’t mean that it isn’t suitable for younger skin. Out of the products that I tried, their formulas are light and effective, with a focus on giving you a beautiful – but natural – finish. This brand focus comes from their story, where the creator Lisa Claycomb originally developed the Instant Line Smoother (a clear cosmetic to instantly smooth away the appearance of fine lines, wrinkles, bags and puffiness) for her mother. Although I didn’t try that product, I’m definitely keen on giving in a shot in the future.

Instead, let’s move on to what I do have!

Base Makeup, Beauty, Cheek, Contour & Highlight, Eyes, Reviews, Sponsor Post, Stores/Brands

Review: SSIN Stealer (Unpretty Rapstar)

25/05/2017 No Comments

Ssin Stealer SSSINIM and Unpretty Rapstar Cosmetics Review

SSIN is one of my favourite Youtubers, seriously, and so when she released her first collaboration with Unpretty Rapstar, I was ridiculously excited but it was difficult to get my hands on the products because I don’t live in Korea and the brand was still relatively new at the time (I think so, anyway). I wanted to buy it while I was in Korea but I ended up leaving without it… and in retrospect, I sort of wonder why I did so. Since then though, I’ve been fawning over it online and it’s taken me so long but I finally got my hands on it. BB Cosmetic recently sent me multiple products from this entire line to write about. Regrettably, these products are now being discontinued and SSIN has moved onto her second collaboration (and this time, it’s with Too Cool For School) but I enjoyed these products so much that I wanted to write about them anyway. If they are an example of the sort of products we can expect from Unpretty Rapstar, I’ll be looking to trying out more things from their brand too. In Korea, they are sold at a fashion store called Wonderplace but, for those who are internationally based like myself, you can find these products at BB Cosmetic.

At the time of writing this, these products are still available on the website but only in extremely limited quantities, so get in fast if you’re wanting to get them. BB Cosmetic does free shipping for all orders (no order limit) and you can also get 8% off with my blogger’s code: QAL3F6ZA8YZ. They also have a great range of other things that you can check out too.

Read on for my thoughts about the SSIN Stealer Long Take Browcara, Masking Color Corrector, Spotlight highlighter and Frame Shadow Collection eyeshadow palette!

Beauty, Reviews, Stores/Brands, Unboxing

Unboxing & Review: Althea

23/05/2017 No Comments

Althea Haul Review Banila Co Laneige Skinfood Innisfree

With all of the make up that I tend to buy while I’m on holidays, as well as the blogger gifts that I get (which I am so ridiculously happy and thankful for, seriously), I actually don’t buy make up as much as people think that I do. In fact, I think this was my first purchase since coming home from Japan – which I think is pretty impressive with my shopping addict history. This time, I decided to try out a new online store that I had seen my other blogger friends posting about on Instagram – Althea. I’d heard such great things about them and I loved the professionalism of their website, so I went for it.

For this order, I needed to buy a refill for my HG cushion, the Laneige whitening cushion, which isn’t exactly a cheap cushion to be using. I was having trouble finding places online that sold only the refill, so I settled for buying another set but I was searching online for where I could get the best deal – especially since I also didn’t want to pay exorbitantly for shipping. I did see it online at other stores but, at the time, they were out of my colour and I could only find it on an ebay store (which I had never heard of and couldn’t find proper reviews for) and on another online store that I have decided not to purchase from again in the near future because of their poor customer service and ridiculously slow shipping (where products aren’t going out of the warehouse because of understocking). Both of these places, I was very uncertain about buying from so I was so happy when I came over Althea!

What won it for me was that, aside from selling the Laneige cushion for a very fair price, they also had in stock the limited edition Banila Co x Taeyeon colour kit that I’ve been desperately trying to get on my hands on. It was a quick decision and here I am.

Read for my haul post and remember that this is not a sponsored post. This is my own shopping experience that I enjoyed so much, I had to share.

Beauty, New Releases, Reviews, Skincare, Sponsor Post, Stores/Brands

Brand Spotlight & Review: Trilogy

20/04/2017 No Comments

Most of the things that I review on my blog are Asian – usually Korean. This isn’t surprising since I do love asian products, brands, ingredients and trends but, as someone who lives in Australia, it can be a bit hard to get my hands on them sometimes. We have to wait for online stores to carry then, sometimes pay exorbitant shipping fees or wait an eternity for things to arrive. With that in mind, one of my goals this year was to actually start reviewing Western products that would be more accessible for some of us, but still focusing on Asian beauty trends.

Kicking this off, I’ll be introducing a brand to you guys called Trilogy. They are New Zealand’s number one skincare brand (according to their website) and they call themselves a natural brand – against animal testing, non-GMO, supporting ethical practices and even with recyclable packaging. Unlike a lot of Asian brands where you are a little unsure of their stance on these topics – except for Innisfree that uses their recycling, natural image as a bit of a marketing gimmick – you can buy and use Trilogy products with an ease of mind.

Apparently, their statement is, “Maximum effect on your skin, minimum effect on our environment.” And I can definitely live with that.

They were started by two sisters back in 2002 and originally had a range of five rosehip oil products. Since then though, they have expanded their product line and – let me tell you – I do love them! I usually have some issues with Western products where they are a bit too heavy for my skin. Some moisturisers refuse to even absorb for me, which is why I turn to Korean products all the time, but these were perfectly hydrating for my skin.

I tried out three different products from them, all of which smelled and felt wonderful. Keep reading for my breakdown of all three products!

Beauty, New Releases, Reviews, Sponsor Post, Stores/Brands, Unboxing

Haul: Early Picker (AprilSkin & Medicube)

20/04/2017 No Comments

Oh My Stellar Kbeauty Review Medicube Aprilskin Early Picker Review

I always love trying out new brands and products (especially if they’re viral, new releases) so you can imagine my excitement when I was approached by new online store Early Picker and offered a collaboration with them. They ended up letting me choose a selection of things from their website to review and, naturally, I couldn’t pass up my AprilSkin and the newly popular Medicube. In fact, the Magic Snow Cushion 2.0 and Red Concealer was personally recommended by them as well. They’re so friendly, responsive and great to work with.

So the concept of Early Picker is actually quite simple and you can get it from their business name – ‘early’ because they aim to carry new products quickly and ‘picker’ because they curate their stock selectively. They aim to carry the most popular, trending Korean products the quickest. In fact, I think that they have all of Medicube and AprilSkin’s range. At the moment, the number of brands that they carry is a bit limited but they have the good stuff, and I look forward to seeing them blossom into a larger business in the future. AprilSkin, Medicube and Glamd at their alliance brands, so you can bet that they will be the first place to go to for these brands.

In addition to their reasonable pricing, they also have a special feature called a timed sale. Basically, they take their best selling products and sell them in a bulk buy set, which is discounted from the normal price and has free shipping. If you’re a hoarder (like myself) or if you have a bunch of friends to buy with (probably not like myself), then this would be a great opportunity for you.

Usually, their products also come with a sample pouch which I am told is a really important part of their service – it’s very generous (as you can get up to 12+ samples) and may also include full sized products as samples. Perfect for those of us who like to try new things. At the time of sending for my package, their packing service had run out of pouches and so send it to me without. I actually told them that it’s fine for me to go without but they’ve generously insisted and will be mailing the pouch and more products to me soon! I’ll be hauling the second package once I receive it.

So, moving on, I’ll be showing you guys everything that I got from Early Picker! I won’t be doing in depth with a review as I will have separate posts for everything, but so I was so excited that I just needed to do a haul post again.

Beauty, Reviews, Sponsor Post, Stores/Brands, Unboxing

Unboxing: December 2016 (MISHIBOX)

20/01/2017 No Comments

A lot of people are absolutely obsessed with subscription boxes and I can totally see the appeal – affordable prices, a good selection of curated beauty products and everything is shipped straight to your front door like a personal surprise. I’ve always been hesitant about them though, mostly because I am a bit particular about what brands and types of products I like so I don’t want to be spending my money on things that I’m not interested in. However, this is a bit of close mindedness from me (I admit) so for the coming year, I’m wanting to look more into subscription boxes as well.

For my first foray, I’ll be unboxing the December box from MISHIBOX – a Korean subscription box that is actually fairly well known. They also have an online store where you can buy products individually but, of course, they are much more well known for their bright pink bunny ornamented packages (i.e. these ones). They go from USD$19.95 a month plus shipping and all of their products are imported from Korea with guaranteed authenticity. According to their website:

Our mission at MISHIBOX (pronounced “me-she”) is to help you explore the exciting (and sometimes very cute) world of Korean beauty. We want to help you discover your favorite products in a convenient, effortless, and affordable way. We will send you a curated box with a combination of 5 – 6 deluxe-sized samples and full-sized Korean beauty products from a wide range of Korean brands. We are all about finding the best Korean beauty products for you to try from both brands that you already love and the brands that we think you will love.

I was lucky enough to be chosen to receive a PR box in December to review, share and talk about so read on to see what this special one contained!

Beauty, Cleansing, Misc, Reviews, Skincare, Stores/Brands

Top 10 Skincare Products of 2016

30/12/2016 No Comments

Top 10 Skincare Products 2016 Review List

With the new year coming really, really close, it seems like it’s time for me to finish up my list of top skincare products for the year too! Skincare is an absolutely essential part of a beauty regime and it took spending quite a while in Korea for me to really jump on board of this. Let’s get real here: make up gives you instant results. With the right skills, you can completely transform your look, hide your flaws, in a matter of minutes. There is a reason I tend to review make up more than skincare – it’s faster and I’m impatient.

However, it is important to keep in mind that skincare is not an overnight thing. It is a dedicated regime that improves and protects your complexion continuously. After all, good skin doesn’t wipe off with a baby wipe.

Keeping that in mind, you can actually argue that skincare is more important that make up – and most people believe that. I’m not here to debate though and, instead, I’m going to be showing you the products I’ve used with dedication through this year. These are all things that I love, will be taking with me to 2017 and hope will help you too when you go to check them out. Read on!

Beauty, Sponsor Post, Stores/Brands, Unboxing

Unboxing and Haul: My Korean Makeup

23/09/2016 No Comments

Fact: getting packages in the mail makes my entire day better, even if it is a weekday and I’ve been half awake at my office desk for hours. It’s always been better when it’s a kbeauty delivery – which is exactly what happened a few days ago! Here’s a haul of a package I was sent from online store My Korean Makeup. They are a Norway based business, meaning that their website is superbly navigable for a foreign audience (like you and I) but have employees shipping from South Korea, meaning that they also get new, fresh stock at great prices.

The default currency is set to NOK, but I will usually change it to USD as that is the currency that Paypal uses. This is one of my favourite functions of the website, as I often get confused trying to convert prices from KRW; the only thing that could make this better would be having AUD as an option but since we are still a fairly small market, I’m not too surprised.

The overall selection at the store is a little limited, but they carry most of the popular brands and products so would still be suitable! I’m also told that they are restocking (and bringing in new stock) pretty much weekly, so I’m keeping my hand on the refresh button. For those who are new to kbeauty, they also have curated box sets (note: not a subscription box) to get you started.

Aside from free international shipping to all countries (except South Korea), My Korean Makeup also have a great return policy – full refunds are available within 30 days and, if the fault is theirs, they will also pay the shipping cost. They’re very responsive to email and actually have a contact sheet online too, so there’s no need to go digging for email addresses.

All in all, their website was super easy to navigate with a very secure check out system, so I would definitely recommend checking them out!

Beauty, Sponsor Post, Stores/Brands, Unboxing

Unboxing and Haul: StyleKorean

13/09/2016 No Comments

StyleKorean Kbeauty Review Aprilskin BB Cushion Pink Purple White Magic Snow

Hi everyone! I’m here today to introduce (and give you my thoughts) on my new collaborator –StyleKorean. They are a Korea based online store that specialises in kbeauty and had actually contacted me about sending some things over for me to review. I’m so thankful for the opportunity and great support that they’ve given me! I’ve been posting on this blog steadily and trying to improve my content, so it’s always really great to find people who enjoy what I post – especially when they also share my passion for bringing great asian beauty products to a wider international audience.

StyleKorean has been operating since 2012 and, since 2015, have international warehouses in both Korea and Hong Kong as well them offices in Hong Kong, China, USA and Korea. They are extremely professional and you can read more about them on their website.

Looking through their store, I am absolutely taken aback by their clean and user friendly web design, which is often a weakness of kbeauty stores. The website is very easily to navigate and they also stock a wide range of brands and products – including some that are less common on other websites: 3CE, Memebox and Son & Park being some of that I am most excited about.

If you want to check out their website, click the below banner! Otherwise, let’s proceed with the haul:

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