WARNING: A SLIGHTLY DEPRESSING BLOG

We often find ourselves at some point in life just thinking nonstop about what’s going on around us and what’s going to happen in the near future. I can’t stop thinking about it. I’m a hypocrite.

           

            So I told my friend just a week ago to not think about these things so often and take things as they come; slowly. However, slow feels like eternity in my head and I’m about to explode if I don’t get these thoughts out. So as I was saying, my friend is rather bothered by all this and it’s making her unhappy. She has a boyfriend, she has two jobs, she seems to be doing well in school, but she’s unhappy. Why is she unhappy? In a way I understand her because no matter how much I laugh and smile in everyday life, deep down I have my own sadness. It’s not sadness from pain, it stems from the sadness that everyone experiences throughout their lives. I wonder if anyone is ever really happy deep down. With all these worries and stress, we carry on with our lives but this THING is never really gone.

            I find that sometime I find myself just looking and observing others. I really like analyzing people and trying to figure out their behaviour and motives for doing things. Maybe I’m just trying to look for an answer in myself. I don’t know why I feel this way and I get slightly irritated when others ask why do I feel like this or why do I do things like this. Why, is the question I’m also trying to answer. Do we also have to have motive for doing things? I guess we do since that’s what civilized people do, but I just want to let loose and do what I want without others questioning what I do. I don’t want to know why I do things.

            And so I move back to my friend. I gave her a lot of advice that day, not knowing myself what I was saying. Half the crap I said I don’t think I believed myself because that wasn't exactly how I felt. Again HYPOCRITE. But what I said was the ideal and how I really wanted to feel except right now, I’m still wondering about everything.

            I’m hitting 21 very soon. It’s the big party age if you live in America. Parties are supposed to be fun and on the surface they are, but sometimes I feel like they’re not even that fun. You go and get drunk; everyone forgets for a moment of all their problems and enjoys the buzz. That’s it, right? Yeah, it’s real smart drowning all these emotions in alcohol; a Bellini would be nice.

            I guess what I’m trying to say is, we don’t know what’s going to happen in the future. Heck, we don’t even really know what’s happening right now. But the one thing that keeps everyone going is hope, hope that one day things will clear up and that cloud in our heads will dissipate into a clear sunny sky. My ultimate goal is to understand my purpose and my own motives for living my life. I just wish I didn't have so many eyes and mouths at my side watching and telling me each and every step I take. Is life truly ours? Or is our social environment the stubborn little cloud that won’t move?

            My problem: EMPTINESS.

Gmarket Haul - emergency skincare

I have finally decided to update my blog with a new haul. This time around, I am purchasing what I call my "emergency skincare". Why, you ask? Well to give you a little update on my skin, I've had horrible reactions to my previous products plus the added stress from school did not help at all. 

If you're not familiar with IOPE or O HUI, they are highly popular korean brands. IOPE is under AMORE PACIFIC which also makes high end brands like HERA, mid-end like LANEIGE, and affordable products from ETUDE HOUSE. O HUI on the other hand is a high-end brand from LG Cosmetics.

First off, my experience with Gmarket was great this time around. It took exactly a week to receive all of my purchases, in a giant box like always. Nothing was damaged and each thing was packaged neatly and carefully. I will be purchasing again sometime in the future when shipping goes on discount...I paid $35 for shipping this time. 

So I have been eyeing this product for quite a while, and finally decided to purchase it after much consideration. This is the newest item from IOPE called the BIO ESSENCE INTENSIVE CONDITIONING. It was only released last year but it has slowly started to gain much popularity in Asia by being compared to the SK-II Facial Treatment Essence. It claims to enhance every day changing skin's condition to help create translucently smooth skin. I paid $47 for this set and it comes with the 168ml bottle, 84 facial cotton sheets, and a 5-piece sample set from the moistgen line. Everything was packaged nicely and I love the little gift. I really hope this works well with my skin so watch out for a longer review on this. 

The second set that I bought is this O HUI White Extreme Special set. Description: Transparent cells make bright skin. O HUI White Extreme is a whitening treatment that purifies, regenerates and brightens the skin by restoring fresher radiance to the cells. This set was $77 and it comes with the two full size emulsion and toner (each 150ml), two deluxe size (20ml), the cell shine essence (4ml), the purifying cleansing foam (40ml),  and a 3D black mask. I have actually tried a sample of these products before and I absolutely loved them. They made my skin look brighter and more transparent, as well as improving the quality of my skin as a whole. During the summer, I found a location that sells these products but the set goes for $150. 

Overall, I think this purchase was much more worth it than buying it in store. Gmarket has always been my go-to place for korean cosmetics and makeup because of the value. Except for the overblown price for shipping, I think it's pretty worth it. I will be posting reviews for these products as soon as I get a good sense of them so please watch out for that!!

Thanks for reading! =)

Gmarket Haul - 숨37도(SU:M 37˚) and ISA KNOX (+ Shopping Tips)

This is my last haul for the summer and of course I had to stock up on some skincare products for this coming fall and winter =) 

I've had experience with purchasing products from Gmarket before but this is by far my biggest haul so far. So for those of you who don't know what Gmarket is, it's basically the korean version of ebay. You can find just about anything from skincare to household products so it's extremely convenient. You just have to make an account and start shopping!

Tips: make sure you click for discount coupons everyday so you can save more!

-they do charge for shipping based on weight and it might seem a little pricey but if they overcharge you then they will deposit the extra charge to your account. Shipping rates are also based on the country you live in, of course, if you live closer to korea then it's much cheaper.

-you can also track your items and so far I haven't gotten charged extra by customs and that's probably because they list it as a gift.

-the products do come from individual shops and when you order the items, they are shipped from the shops to the Gmarket warehouse and then shipped off to you. From the order date, it takes about 1 week to arrive but that's for Canada, it really depends on where you live.

Website: http://english.gmarket.co.kr/

The individual products come in small boxes shipped from the sellers and then Gmarket ships them in this giant box. It's sometimes unnecessary if you order something small but they'll still send it in this giant thing. 

The first skincare set is from su:m 37 which is considered a slighter higher end brand under LG Household & Health Care Ltd. It was launched in 2007 so it's petty new. It follows the philosophy of giving oxygen to the skin for good respiration and the 37 represents the optimal fermentation temperature. The very first picture is their best selling product called the secret programming essence and it is said to be comparable to the SK-II facial treatment essence. This set cost 58,500won and it comes with the 80ml essence bottle (also available in 150ml), the time energy line emulsion and toner (20ml each), and eye cream (5ml), and the white award detox mask (10ml; also top selling product). At the bottom are 2 products from the time energy line: skin resetting refining toner (31,900won) in 160ml and skin resetting softening emulsion (35,100won) in 130ml. I did not get any free samples from any of these purchases but I think that's because they were on discount of that shop just really doesn't like to give away samples. They are packaged in heavy glass bottle with a very sleek design and an oriental logo on the top cap. These products have a citrus scent and are quite good for moisturizing. I recommend for those with normal to combination skin. I have oily skin but I enjoy this very much at night time, I hold out a bit during the day.

Isa Knox is also under the same company as su:m 37 but is probably one of their more affordable skincare. They do have premium lines that can go for over 100CAD but I only spent about 65CAD on all of these Isa Knox product (excluding shipping). Unfortunately I can't seem to find any reviews or english instructions for any of these products so that's a letdown. But considering the prices I couldn't pass up to stock up for my whitening skincare for this winter =) The product above is the ISA KNOX MX-II Platinum Ultra White Serum (24,500won) and this comes in 35ml. Not a lot of product but a decent price. The bottle is heavy and a little extra for the amount of product but I do enjoy nice packaging. I haven't tried any of the Isa Knox products yet so I can't say much about it.

Finally, I bought this entire set on a huge summer deal. This entire set was only 49,200won and every product here is a full sized product except for the cream on the left corner of the second picture. The set consists of the MX-II Platinum ultra white softener (120ml) and emulsion (170ml), sample sizes of the ultra white serum (10ml x 2), Ideal ringer in the medihyalon drop (40ml) and astin C drop (40ml), WX-II spot whitening treatment (30ml), MX-II platinum eye cream (30ml), revolution sun pact (SPF35PA++), and MX-II platinum ultra moisture cream (25ml). I have only tried the astin C drop and I really like it. It has a serum consistency and it absorbs into your skin very well. It can be used before an essence, alone, or with other ringers. It's orange in colour and it has a strong citrus/orange smell. It prevents skin oxidation which gives it anti aging properties to keep the skin looking youthful and fair. It contains Astaxanthin and Acai bery.

So after shipping I paid around 230CAD but they charged me an extra 15CAD and now that's in my Gmarket account cash which I can use to towards a purchase as long as the cash in my account is greater than the purchase amount which includes shipping of course. Overall I'm very satisfied with my purchases and since I've started shopping on Gmarket, I've become completely obsessed and addicted. I'll be saving up for new purchases in the future. =)

Makeup Primers - Banila Co vs. Missha

Makeup primers are not always necessary but they do help your foundations or bb creams stay on longer and look better. I hate putting on extra products on my face but these two things do make all the difference in the world. 

I purchased a couple of banila co products on Gmarket a couple of weeks ago, including one of their top selling products, the prime primer in classic matte. Now I do have combination oily skin and this goes on very smoothly and not super thick. 

It is comparable to the Makeup Forever HD primer as it goes on light and it works just as well. It's a wonderful makeup base and I usually use it with bb cream. I haven't experienced any complications with the product yet but it's still a little too much for an everyday product. It's 30ml, it cost about 20CAD, and it contains sebum control powder. I give it a 7/10 because while it keeps my makeup on, it is a little too dry and it sometimes creates some weird makeup lines on my face from the bb creams. 


On the other hand, Missha's BB Boomer is specifically made to prepare the skin for bb cream. It contains pearl powder and antioxidant ingredients that help keep the skin moisturized and illuminated. This product really helps my bb cream stay on longer and it makes my complexion look much brighter. Yay! =) My skin definitely looks like it's glowing with this under my bb cream and it doesn't melt off my face so that's a good thing hehe. I think I like this better than the classic matte primer because it's like putting moisturizer on my skin rather than a makeup product. I got this at pacific mall for about 12CAD and it's 40ml. I've used this for over a year now and it's still one of my favourite products. This is highly recommended and I give it a 9/10, one point because it still makes my face a little shiny during the day.  

Sheet Masks Review #1

101: Masks are great for any occasion. Whether it be an event, a date, or a simple day of relaxation. If you want to have good skin, masks should be a staple product in your skincare routine at least 2-3 times a week. When I have problems with my skin, I use them every single night before I go to sleep and they work miracles on the skin.


Tips: leave them for an extra 20-30 minutes for better absorption, leaving your skin soft and oh so supple. 

There can be a range of functions so give your skin what it really needs =)


Holika Holika sheet masks
I recently bought these masks at the Holika Holika store at pacific mall because my skin has been pretty bad as you can see. I have tried the cherry blossom one and the the tea tree mask. I personally like the cherry blossom mask because it smells so good and it has enough essence so the sheet doesn't dry out as quickly. It made my skin super soft and feeling hydrated. So thumbs up for the cherry blossom sheet mask =) 
As for the tea tree masks, it gave me a weird tingling sensation when I first put it on. Maybe it's because I have super sensitive skin but this is the first time I felt this. It tightened my face immediately and it was quite uncomfortable, almost like my face was burning, but it went away after 10 minutes. As opposed to other masks, this mask didn't leave my skin as plump or hydrated but it felt clean and my skin looks a lot better than it did a couple of days ago believe it or not. 

Is this really what I look like

 It didn't fit that great so I had to move the mask around. It's almost like it was made for people with small faces, large eyes, tall noses, and big lips? That's the only way I can sum it all up unfortunately. The good thing was that it didn't have the film that other sheet masks have; it was folded with plenty of essence. I left it on for about 40 minutes and the results are shown in the picture below. The essence pretty much absorbed into my skin so I didn't have to pat in any extra. The sheet masks are sold for $2.00 canadian each, which is a little expensive for this quality of masks. Overall I give them a 7/10 and I probably won't repurchase these anymore. I prefer the my beauty diary sheet masks. 

ewwwwwwww