4 Minute Morning: My Quick 6-Step K-Beauty Routine

How long does it take to do a multi-step Korean beauty product routine? A lot less time than I thought, as it turns out. Gone are the old days of lazy 20+ minute AM routines, where I could leisurely apply layers of products between answering emails and sipping my coffee.

My AM routine now consists of potty dancing in front of my mirror as I slap on products while my puppy chirps and whines to be let out of her crate. It's easy to slap on a bunch of products as fast as possible, but it's trickier to have them absorb in time for your sunscreen to safely adhere to your face.

It's fast, it's fervent, it's done on a full bladder: it's my 3 minute and 47 second K-Beauty morning routine

It's also as hot and humid AF right now, which means my sunscreen wants to slide into my eyes as soon as I step out the door, resulting in me staggering around my yard trying to wipe my burning, streaming eyes like a freshly maced frat boy. I need my products in place and locked down against the summer heat, and that's a lot harder to do in the time it takes for the puppy to lose patience and start chewing her bed.

In this post:

• It's all in the timing; a simple change made a big difference
• Which 6 steps are necessities
• A full face with +2 minutes extra

Trying to get all this stuff done in stages, in between her AM potty break and AM playtime, just wasn't working for me. Instead of popping outside in a hat, doing the thing, and zipping back indoors for my next step, anything less than a fully ready face resulted in me chasing her around the yard trying to dig rocks, sticks, and occasionally my shoe out of her mouth, without sun protection. Hat + chasing down a speedy tinydog = unplanned sun exposure.

Necessity was the mother of inventing a workable AM routine so fast I decided to time it to see just how long it took for me to roll out the door, ready for puppy potty & playtime in the summer sun.

Weekend Travel Essentials For Lazy Summer Skincare

I don't travel well. Or rather, I don't prepare for travel well. I always feel stressed out of proportion about the packing stage, and having a multi-step skincare routine complicates even a simple weekend trip by car. Rather than fuss with what skincare to bring, I just grabbed necessities off my sink.

Does anyone else have issues with the sudden appearance of skin troubles during travel? It's like one's cycle; always picks the worst possible time to visit. With that in mind, I prepared for a skin rebellion just in case. They say that what you prepare for doesn't happen, after all.

I managed to snap these in between intermittent summer showers.

It fit in a ziploc, at least. A large one.

In this post:

• Sunscreen
• Double Cleansers
• Clear Pores & Soothe Skin
• Brighten & Moisturize
• Nullify Blemishes
• Cushion and Concealer
• Mist because it's @#^$# hot out and heat makes me crabby

Also, these photos will not only feature "Skincare I Brought With Me to My In-Laws' House" but also "Random Items I Pilfered From My Bemused Mother-In-Law's Decor For Photo Props" and "Gifts Of Quirky Things She Correctly Thought I'd Like, Such As Old Books And Shiny Things" because hey, you work with what you have on hand when you're travelling. It's ... a metaphor. Something about necessity, or something.

Anyway, here's what I brought to keep me safe, sane, and with as few surprise pimples as possible.

Sulwhasoo Golden Bird 2017 Limited Edition Cushion

Forget what I had planned to review, my Sulwhasoo Perfecting Cushion Brightening Golden Bird 2017 Limited Edition beauty is here! It's time for photos, swatches, more photos, and also photos. Because rawr.

I'm such a sucker for metallic accents like this. The shinier, the better! #magpiethings

There are two Limited Edition versions of the Perfecting cushions, the regular Perfecting and the Perfecting Brightening; this is the latter. They're both gorgeous though, it was hard to choose. You all know I'm forever a ho for fan of all things Sulwhasoo and their Peony 2014 Limited Edition Cushion is one of my prized K-Beauty possessions.

Sulwhasoo releases Limited Edition cushions and powders every few years, but the last few have left my enthusiasm flaccid and my wallet happy. When this magical baby showed up on my Instagram feed (courtesy of enabler Julie of @pdxbeautful) my skincare boner sprang to attention and I set out to get my hands on it stat.

In this post

• Photos of the Sulwhasoo Perfecting Cushion Brightening Golden Bird 2017 Limited Edition
• Where to get the Limited Edition cushions
• What cushions fit into this case for more shade options
• Swatches of #11 and #13 vs Mac NC10 and NC15

I've reviewed the Sulwhasoo Perfecting Cushion #13 and I've been using the Sulwhasoo Perfecting Cushion Brightening #11 for a while. I'll be doing a full review of it in the future, but right now, it's all about this cushion case.

Korean Buying Service Haul: Jung Saem Mool, Make P:rem, & Pretty Bottles

As much as I love how accessible K-Beauty has become, there's nothing quite like getting an order of hard-to-find products straight from Korea.  This haul had a rocky journey getting to me, especially when I thought I spotted a car speeding away after thieving one of the boxes off my porch, but everything arrived safely at last, and I've accepted that good light for photos is something I won't see again until the season changes, so here we are.

'Tis the season for the Haul-idays?  Also, check out that adorable panda note! :3

This package arrived in two boxes, one of which came more than a week after the first one, which itself was a few weeks delayed, leaving me sweating over their whereabouts.  As usual, I ordered my goodies through Amy of Boyah Shop, who remains both the best and the cutest buying service I've ever worked with.

I also made my first purchase through AliExpress, because my thirst for gorgeous Hanbang-themed packaging for my decants overrode my nervousness about ordering from the site.

In this post:

• Jung Saem Mool Beauty: Colour correcting palette, blushes, & sample swag
• Make P:rem: Cleansing water, cleansing foam, & cleansing ... pack??
• About Me: Ginseng mask pack & disaster
• AliExpress: Hanbangin' mist bottles
• Sulwhasoo: Perfecting Brightening #11 & Evenfair Perfecting #11 cushions, & sample service galore

If you aren't familiar with how a buying service works, here's a quick recap: 1. you tell your buyer what you want, 2. they invoice you for what it will cost them to buy your goods + a small fee for their service, 3. they receive the goods and prepare them for shipment, and invoice you for the actual shipping cost, 4. you receive your package and squee.

If you're looking for more details on how to find what you want, check out this post: Guide to using a Korean buying service when you don't know Korean, ft blogger Kahime , which covers everything from copypaste-able keywords and brands in Korean, shopping sites, search engines, and an automated calculator to estimate the KRW currency conversion and your final costs.

The perks of using a buying service is that you can get products that aren't readily available through regular K-Beauty vendors, and/or skip huge retail markups.  I've mostly done the former in this haul, but I've had posts where I've detailed the crazy savings you can pull off depending on what you purchase.  Let's get to it!

Tower of Empties: Empties, Discards, and Pretties

Last week, I mentioned in What's In My Stash: Forgotten Finds & Organization Overhaul that one of the last tasks I had on my to-do list was to tackle a giant box of empties.  I wasn't kidding; this thing is so massive it deserved its own post!  Behold the dragon, unslain:

Just imagine how big this box is, if my phone looks that tiny.  Click for huge size.

I admit I was a bit daunted, but I was determined get my office to 100% organized, so this box needed to be dealt with.  It contained a mash-up of empties tucked back in their boxes, packaging for products I'm currently using, empties orphaned from their boxes and boxes orphaned from their empties, products banished to the discard pile, and gorgeous product packaging worth keeping regardless of how I felt about the products inside.

There was also a staggering number of sheet mask boxes, which I haven't included in the photos because there would be no room for anything else.  That reminds me, I still need to inventory my sheet masks ... oh dear.  Still not at 100%  Another day, then. *shakes fist at the sky*

So without further ado, here's the Tower of Empties (at least what would fit) precariously perched in my office:

It looks like so much less when it's all tidily arranged, no?  Ah wait, that's right, this is all that would fit without falling off.  Click for huge size.

Mmm, so many empties.  I've taken close-ups of each tier, and will be calling out some notable products from each.  They'll be numbered for ease of  "what the heck is that one 4 places from the left?!" identification.

In this post:

• The "would not repeat" tier
• The "gone but not forgotten" tier
• The "so pretty I'm hoarding it" tier

Of course, now that I've managed to assemble this house of cards boxes and bottles in order to take photos of it, I need to pack it all away because our struggle has reduced my office to rubble.

Onward to the goods!

What's In My Stash: Forgotten Finds & Organization Overhaul

This weekend I finally battled my stash, and I believe I've succeeded in wrestling it into submission.  I may have ragged fingernails, skinned knuckles, and more bruises than I want to contemplate, but after a weekend of hauling around boxes, sorting piles of products, and late-night furniture assembly, I've finally managed to properly set up my stash!

By that, I mean that I wanted a way for me to visually see my skincare stash at a glance instead of having to go digging through drawers and boxes, because I have a lot of interesting things that I just don't pull out and ogle nearly enough.  Like these:

IOPE, why did you have to change your refill inserts right after I bought this limited edition case for a giveaway?

I'm not usually too concerned with the state of my stash organization, because I have it organized in a spreadsheet that keeps track of it all for me, but my home office had become overrun with partially-unpacked orders, various photography trappings, and a thriving colony of packing materials that seemed to be breeding in every corner.

I'm good at keeping track of what I buy (that spreadsheet, yo) but I somehow manage to forget to enter the things I receive as gifts, either from friends or "gifts with purchase" which arrived in store orders.

In this post:

• The result: behind the scenes in my home office & tamed stash
• Interesting finds from the depths of my stash: "Oh hey, I should totally use this!"
• Adventures in stash wonderland: inside drawers, shelves, refrigerator, & my bathroom counter
• What's left on my to-do list

I was amazed at how little space it took up once I sorted through everything and pulled out all the empties, boxes, and discards-- I have no idea how large the average beauty blogger's stash is, but compared to the jaw-dropping stash videos I've seen, mine is downright tiny!  Bless you, spreadsheet, for keeping me in check, even if you can't display all the pretty packaging.  Time for lots of photos!

Sulwhasoo Perfecting Cushion #13 Review & Swatches

I used to hate cushions.  I didn't like the unsanitary concept, the limited shade ranges, the high price point and low product volume, the lack of samples for colour matching before purchase, and after the DIY cushion method was a hot mess, I gave up on the idea as just a runaway hype train.

I was wrong, kinda.  Like their BB cream counterparts, shade ranges are limited although there are signs that's improving, and I was relieved to hear that cushions are apparently formulated with the maximum preservative concentration possible to offset the hygiene concerns.  There are now cushions for every budget and one really shouldn't be using them for longer than a few months anyway, but unfortunately there's still a dearth of options should you want to test to see if a cushion shade will fit you before you buy.  There are adorable tiny cushions out there, but they're rare.

That means swatches are critical to the "sight unseen" buying process of cushions.  As fellow Snailcast podcaster Tracy of Fanserviced-b put it during our episode on cushions,"people who swatch cushions are first in line for heaven" so it's time for me to pay it forward.

Insert in #13 via a buying service + Limited Edition Peony cushion purchased from 11st

One of the things I love about cushions is the ability to swap in different inserts but keep the same case; I managed to get my paws on one of the 2014 limited edition Sulwhasoo Peony cushion cases last year, although I purchased it in a shade I knew was wrong for me.  That's no barrier-- I simply purchased some refill inserts and swapped those in instead.  You can read more on how to use 11st here: Level Up Your K-Beauty Obsession: a Guide to 11st + My 1st 'Real' Cushion!

In this post:

• Product details
• Ingredients
• Comparison swatches of Mac NC15, Sulwhasoo Perfecting Brightening #17, and Sulwhasoo Perfecting #13
• Cushion demo & why I shouldn't apply makeup in my bathroom
• Instagram 10k thank-you giveaway details

In an effort to be thorough, I'll be providing both arm swatches comparing the Sulwhasoo cushions I have next to Mac NC15, and also face swatches as well, so you can see the coverage, finish, and what it looks like on a real face.  When I finish this review, I'm going to try to drink away the image of my bare skin in HD.  Clearly I need to get back on the PIH (post-inflammatory hyperpigmentation) fading wagon after slacking off on actives for the summer.

Is K-Beauty for Everyone? Perspectives on Appropriation and Marketing

I have a confession: I've been in a bit of a skincare funk.  For a long time, I've blamed it on overwork-- working 60 hours a week has left me little time for luxuries like brushing my hair showering daily sleeping more than a few hours a night an elaborate skincare routine, but I've come to realize that it's much more than that.  I'm in a K-Beauty funk, meaning that I've been feeling conflicted and troubled every time I go to wash my face.  It's time for some soul-searching.

As K-Beauty has become more and more mainstream in the west, it's gone from being an ignored niche interest to a widely-marketed source of $$$ from all levels of the beauty industry, shifting from hipster-y hobbyists to an oversaturation of US-based resellers cannibalizing ideas while mega retailers like Sephora and Target stock sheet masks and snail creams.

You might think this is another one of those tired tropes of aforementioned hipster grumpy over their obscure finds becoming mainstream, but nothing could be further from the truth.

Actually, I'm absolutely thrilled that K-Beauty is in such international demand that Sulwhasoo recently launched a whopping 7 shades ranging from #11 to #33, a move which completely shocked a Korean friend of mine as she pointed out that most Korean brands feature only two shades (#21 and #23) and don't address [in her opinion] the shade needs of Koreans in Korea, let alone anyone outside of Korea.

Image from Sulwhasoo's KR site

I'm quite happy that K-Beauty has grown so much in the 4 years that I've been blogging about it, because it's seen exponential growth and it's a totally different scene since the days where I had to use Google Translate to figure out what I was buying.

What troubles me is how it's being marketed, talked about, and presented.

In this post:

• The trouble with K-Beauty marketing
• Why I write about K-Beauty
• 5 Korean women share their thoughts about K-Beauty on the global stage

There's nothing wrong with a little soul-searching to examine one's own motives and reasons for doing, well, anything.   But more important than what I have to say about it, is what the Korean women I know have to say about it, and I'm fortunate enough to have several sources just an email away for me to ask!

A Quick Note: Something Fun is Coming!

Don't panic, I'm not on hiatus; I'm going through some massive real-life changes that resulted in me being extremely overworked the last few weeks, as well as having a lot more free time for the rest of the summer.  Woo hoo!

In addition to having more free time after I emerge from catching up on 5+ years of lost sleep, I'll have the time to finish working on a serious post with several sources and some delicate topics, and I want to do it justice.  But first, sleep.  Lots of sleep.

What could it beeeee?

In the meantime though, I wanted let you all know that are some exciting things upcoming, so if you aren't following me on Instagram, I'd recommend doing so -- even if (or especially if!) you're outside the US.

As always, you can also connect with me on Facebook or Twitter; I tend to be the most active on the latter when I have nonsensical things to say, so be warned, heh.

All the best,

-Cat

K-Beauty On the Road: Inappropriate Sheetmasking & Involuntary Strobing

If you follow me on Twitter or Instagram, you've no doubt already seen/heard my special-event-attendance woes leading up to this weekend; I live a hectic life full of important things like reorganizing my spreadsheet or inventorying my sheet masks, not to mention writing a blog post every weekend and working 60 hours a week at my day job.  This means social outings that require the trappings of non-hermit life such as well-behaved skin, makeup, and spanx is more than I can handle.

Having had to do it a few weekends in a row has me ready to retire from human contact until at least midsummer.  Stress and troubled skin is a bad combination, but weddings are one of those events that you can't really dodge, so I took advantage of our out-of-state drive and loaded our car trunk with (I kid you not) a cardboard box full of skincare, makeup, and sheet masks.  Being 'ready' was beyond my means, but this was as close as it was going to get.

I loved the dark cherrywood of this desk so much that I'm writing this covered in sawdust. More on that later.

I'm actually already a few hours overdue to be asleep for an early morning workday, so this post is going to be brief (ahahaha no) and terrifying; I'm going to include a demonstration of the cushion + (accidental) highlighter on my skin.

I've also finally figured out how to properly create a linked table of contents (I think), so you can now just jump to the section you want, woo!

In this post:

• Preparing my skin in advance
• What I brought with me
• Unedited photos of the Hera cushion
• Unedited photos of my face wearing the Hera cushion (I need a drink.)

I need an adult, or preferably an adult beverage, but then I'd fall asleep at my computer and the rest of this post would be endless lines of "dfghjjjjjjjjjjjjjjjjjj" and then possibly a tweet tomorrow about how I caused an electrical fire by drooling into my keyboard.  If you don't want to see how my repurposed highlighter + cushion looked after a full night of wear, duck out after the money shots of the cushion.  You've been warned!

Boyah Shop Korean Buying Service Review + Haul of Hanbang & Sheet Masks

I use Korean buying services a lot, probably more than your average K-Beauty fan, for reasons ranging from "I'm a spreadsheet nerd who likes to min/max my costs for the best deal" to "I'm dangerously close to being a K-Beauty hipster looking for the next obscure thing" to "I like putting weird things on my face."  I've used 3 Korean buying services to date, and liked all of them, and today I'm going to review Boyah Shop.  I'm also going to post some haul photos, as peeps requested on my Instagram.

My buying service order has arrived! My heart sank when I saw a giant leak or possible rain damage on the box, worrying that my preciouses might be damaged. But thanks to the stellar packing skills of @boyahshopkr, my products were safely sealed away from what turned out to be massive rain damage.😱☔💧💧💧 I also received a sweet note and I'm a little 😭❤😭 over how amazing this service is. I'm not even sure if I want to write about it on my blog, because I don't want her to be buried in an avalanche of thirsty #kbeauty fans looking for their buying service fix (RIP @Dowaja, you were not long in this world), but spoilers: this buying service is amazing. AH-MAZ-ING. I just ... I can't even. The responsiveness, the customer service, the cute ... so cute. A++++ 😍😍😍 I need to find something I want just so I can use her service again and bask in the cute. 😍😍😍 (in addition to great service, obvs) Working with her is like hugging a pile of kittens, but without allergies involved. #koreanbeauty #koreanbuyingservice #hanbang #haul #cremorlab #jungsaemmool #sheetmasks #snailunit #rasianbeauty

A photo posted by Snow White and the Asian Pear (@snowwhiteandtheasianpear) on Mar 14, 2016 at 3:44pm PDT

I suppose the caption of this is a bit of a spoiler, heh.

In this post:

• How a buying service works
• What Boyah Shop offers
• My experience with the ordering process
• What I bought
• Would I recommend their service

Also featuring some gratuitous unboxing photos of my goodies, because that's how I roll.

From Beginner to Expert Mode: Where I Buy K-Beauty & Asian Cosmetics

One of the most common requests I receive (blog comments, Instagram, Facebook, email, you name it) is where I buy my beauty products.  I do have several guides which I will link in this post, but it seems that a lot of people just want a straightforward list of shops that they can start with.  So, that's what we're going to do today!

Image from: A Haul Before the Storm: Eye candy, Details, First Impressions, & some Mini Reviews

I will be loosely categorizing the shops, but please keep in mind that anyone can buy from anywhere for any reason, these are just how I'd quantify the different shops that I have purchased from, or have plans to purchase from, or would happily recommend to someone looking for something they carry.

In this post:

• Domestic Retailers

Good for: Beginners, Lazy and/or efficient people, Instant gratification seekers, People concerned about counterfeits, Patrons of small business owners

• Domestic e-Markets

Good for: Small haulers, Pinpoint purchases, Deal-seekers with finite patience, People who are annoyed by shifting shipping costs.

• International Retailers

Good for: Deal-seekers, Moderate yolo-ists, People who don't know Korean, Large haulers, Comparison shoppers, Devotees of spreadsheets & min/maxing items vs shipping costs

• Buying Services & Korean Sites

Good for: Advanced users, Thrill-seekers, Hardcore yolo-ists, Spreadsheet nerds, Self-aware K-Beauty hipsters, People who know Korean, Masters of Google Translate,  Deal-seekers with infinite patience

All of the sites listed are places which I have either purchased, or would happily purchase from based off feedback from people I trust.

K-Beauty & Portion Control: Why Sometimes Good Value Can Be a Bad Idea

I know, it sounds a bit crazy.  Good value is good value, right?  Who doesn't love value?  As it turns out, me-- at least some of the time.  This is an idea that has been floating around in my head for a few months, peeking out in posts here and there, and finally I decided I was going to push aside a lackluster review that was too boring to write and explore this idea in earnest.

Many tiny things; full-size sheet mask, cushion, toner, and lip balm for scale.

This is not a traditional or "authentic" Korean beauty concept (after all, I'm not Korean; I do believe that K-Beauty is accessible to everyone), it's just something that's been percolating around my head for a while, with roots in both Korean beauty and the international K-Beauty community.  The evolution of ideas that take root and then flourish into countless branches of inspiration and personal discovery is pretty fascinating, after all!

I've been really captivated by the concepts that have evolved naturally from the international K-Beauty community in the last year.  For better or ill, the international K-Beauty scene is as much of a force as the trends that are coming out of Korea itself, in no small part due to deliberate and official incentive from the Korean government for brands and shops to market only overseas instead of within Korea.  But back to the point, which is that the international K-Beauty community generates some very interesting ideas and concepts, as well as endless variations in approach and personal skincare philosophy.

I think it's important to give oneself room to evolve; ideas can stagnate and then become be perceived as the only "right" way to do something; skincare is so complex and there's just so many factors involved that there's no truism more apt than YMMV aka "your mileage my vary" and there's so much room for figuring out what works for your unique skin.

A lot of these concepts also work synergistically; for example, one can be a proponent of both the Skincare Wardrobe concept and also the Hauling Responsibly concept, by practicing mindfulness when making purchases.  The one I'm going to talk about today works well with both, even if it's going to sound a little crazy at first.

In this post:

• The seed: Go Hyun Jung's skincare tips
• Seasonal Skincare: not just capitalism at work
• Portion control: in your hauls and on your face
• Putting it together: Good value is not necessarily a good thing

So what's today's concept?  The idea that getting a great value on your purchases may not actually be a good idea, or sustainable.  I know, nuts, but hear me out.

An Ode in Photos to My Elusive Muse: Sulwhasoo Limited Edition 2004 Shine Classic Powder Compact

Warning: this post is going to be pretty much "packaging p0rn" from start to finish, but the good (?) news is that this product is impossible to find so your wallet (if not your heart) is safe.

Earlier this week I put some teaser photos on my Instagram because I had just received it and (let's be real here) I couldn't control myself.  I had to share something about it, even if I planned to do a big reveal this weekend-- and in the theme of realness, by "reveal" I mean "excuse to take a ton of gratuitous packaging p0rn photos just because it's one of the most gorgeous things I've ever seen."  There's pretty packaging, and then there's this.

Coming soon to the blog: something magical from @Sulwhasoo_us that I've been stalking for a year, and it's finally mine. #kbeauty #koreanbeauty #kbeauty #koreanskincare #koreanmakeup #instabeauty #Sulwhasoo #prettypackaging #hanbang #ABblogger #kbeautyblogger #thesnailcast #snailunit #rasianbeauty

A photo posted by Snow White and the Asian Pear (@snowwhiteandtheasianpear) on Jan 21, 2016 at 7:37pm PST

I had mentioned in an early episode of The Snailcast podcast that I had been looking forward to the 2015 release of the yearly Sulwhasoo Shine Classic Powder Compact, because I've always inappropriately coveted (nearly biblical-levels) the 2004 Ornamental Tile Limited Edition Sulwhasoo Shine Classic owned by @Labellevie245. However, I knew the 2004 would never be mine; a year ago, Neiman Marcus had a limited stock of them but they'd long since sold out.  I had planned to get a consolation History of Whoo pact but they're so expensive ($100-$150) and my heart really wanted a 2004 Sulwhasoo, even though I knew it was hopeless.

There are some on eBay for a ridiculous price, but I'm not about to spend $150+ on a 12 year old compact that is probably unsafe to use on my face, eh?

Then, this past weekend, magic happened; interrogation of hapless store clerks who had no idea what "Sulwhasoo" was may have also happened. #noregrets

In this post:

• Photos of the box
• Photos of what's inside the box
• Photos up close and far away
• Photos of the pattern in the powder
• Photos for scale
• More photos for no reason other than this is pretty

As I mentioned above, this pact is 12 years old, so there will not be product swatches, first impressions, or any other review-type content in this post (other than a photo demonstrating the size) as I'm not putting this stuff on my face.  I'll be looking into alternatives that can be placed into this pact, so if you know of something that would fit, or where to get just the insert/refill of a Shine Classic 2015 alone, please let me know!

I'll be telling the story of how I got it in between the photos, but this post is 90% photos and I wouldn't have it any other way.  Now onward to the eye candy!

Lazy Morning Staple: Su:m37 Skin Saver Cleansing Water Review

If you follow me on Instagram, where I often post my daily routines, you may have noticed that the Su:m37 Skin Saver Essential Cleansing Water has been featured pretty heavily lately.  After I realized that I had only used my favourite foaming cleanser of 2015 just once in the last two weeks, because I had been reaching for this cleansing water every day, I figured it was high time I reviewed it!

Mmm, this packaging.  The opalescence of the bottle cap is so hard to capture!

This is the third cleansing water I've tried to date, and so far, I like it best of the three although I'm not passionately in love with it- hence why it did not make it onto the 2015 in Review: My Favourite K-Beauty Products of 2015 list.

That's not to say that it's merely the best of the available evils; I quite like this, and it's been my "dear saint snail I'm freezing my ass off and my bathroom is cold as hell and I don't want to wash my face because the chance of getting water on myself is too damn high" cleanser of choice.  It's also my "there had better be coffee when I sloth out of this bathroom like Jabba the Hut" cleanser, and my "I can't feel my fingers" cleanser, and also my "I've lost fine motor control functions because I'm wearing 8 layers to stay warm" cleanser.  It's the first real winter I've experienced after 8 years in the desert, and needless to say, I'm feelin' it.  Especially in the morning, when I look like one of those "before and after coffee" memes and I try to walk through walls and doors that have somehow leapt out to obstruct my path. Jerks.

So if you're like me and you 1. hate mornings in general, 2. hate cold mornings especially, and 3. can't manage to wash your face without splashing water all over yourself, cleansing waters are great.

In this post:

• Product details
• What is a micellar/cleansing water?
• Ingredients
• Packaging
• Demonstration
• Final thoughts & why I like it

I'm going to demonstrate this product's ability to remove makeup as some people use it as a first cleanser/makeup remover, but that's really not what I use it for.  I use it as a gentle, convenient, super-quick AM cleanse for mornings where I am super lazy and/or hate the world and everything in it because I haven't had coffee yet.

2015 in Review, Part I: My Favourite K-Beauty Products of 2015

This year has been definitely been an exciting time for K-Beauty and Asian beauty product fans; long-time fans have seen what was originally a grassroots niche become mainstream.  We've seen the advent of products carried in Sephora, Amazon, and other major retailers, regularly featured in major magazines like Vogue and Allure, and even book releases on the subject- K-Beauty and AB (Asian beauty products) has really come into its own this year, and it's the time of year for 'best of' posts, so here's mine!

The amazing scent of this wreath makes up for the needles everywhere.  Mostly.

There will be two parts to this post, the first a light-hearted rundown of products, and the second a more reflective discussion of the themes, concepts, tips, trends, etc, of 2015.

In this post: Favourite Products of 2015

• Favourite Cleansers of 2015

• Favourite First cleanser

• Favourite Foaming Cleanser

• Favourite Travel Cleanser

• Favourite Cleansing Tool & Honourable Mention

• Favourite Acne & Anti-Aging Products of 2015

• Favourite Skincare of 2015

• Favourite Toner

• Favourite Essences

• Favourite Serum

• Favourite Cream (and overall top pick for 2015!)

• Favourite Sheet Masks

• Favourite Sunscreen

• Favourite Makeup of 2015

• Favourite Base Makeup

• Favourite Lip Product

The more serious-toned Part II is here: 2015 in Review, Part II: My Favourite K-Beauty Tips, Concepts, & Trends of 2015, and includes:

• K-Beauty goes mainstream: does it have to be Korean to be K-Beauty?
• The most influential concepts of 2015
• Healthy habits: things I adopted and let go of in 2015, for the better
• Top tips from 2015: things that made my life easier
• Trends I loved in 2015 and will continue to love in 2016

It should go without saying that this is just my personal list of top picks; please don't be offended if your favourite isn't here!  This year has seen a lot of interesting developments beyond just the products, so rather than just focus on the tangible products, I'll also be giving a shout-out to the intangible developments that excited me the most in Part II- now finished and linked above.

Beginner's Dilemma: Getting Organized & In Control of Your Stash

As I mentioned in my last post Beginner's Dilemma: Overwhelmed on the Order of Your Specific Products? I was inspired to switch up my plans for another post and instead focus on some of the most frequently asked questions I've been getting lately.  The focus of these posts is not to give you yet another in-depth guide like the ones you've no doubt already read, because chances are you've already read them and you're still confused.

These posts are short, to the point, and tactical in nature- last week I gave a simple 3-step method of figuring out where your specific products go in order.  This week I'm going to hit up how to get your stash under control, so you don't feel overwhelmed by your spending, your storage, or your lack of organization.

"How do you store/organize your stash?"

Answer:

You don't have to, at least not physically.  You can organize it, and control it, without having to constantly be re-organizing your drawers and shelves with the same resigned dread one normally reserves for deep-cleaning one's shower stall or refrigerator.  You just need to re-think your organizational methods- and you'll have a great opportunity to do some exploration of your personal philosophy while you do it.

I personally use a spreadsheet, but that's not the only method.  I've also overhauled my spreadsheet, so that it's even more observer-friendly- any time you want to see exactly what I'm up to and which products I'm using for what step, just head over here and take a peep.

No one should feel overwhelmed or negative about something that's ultimately self-care.  Skincare is enough of a journey on its own without evoking feelings of loss of control, so time to put that stash in its place and show it who's the alpha here!

The Painful Path to K-Beauty Wisdom: 7 Mistakes Beginners Make

This weekend's post is going to be fairly short and sweet, because I am determined to finally unpack and put away the entirety of my product stash, and it's going to a monumental task requiring lots of coffee or possibly adult beverages to survive the endeavour, but it needs to be done.  And purging- of the skincare, not skin, variety - does anyone really need a mountain of uninteresting samples of unknown vintage?

There are unused samples lurking in every box.  Also: how much of this do you think I can fit in that as-yet unassembled drawer unit?  Because I am about to find out, and I think like many things in this post, I'm going to find out the hard way.

Clearly since most of my samples are unused and cluttering up my stash, the answer for me is no.  Naturally this has me pondering some of the mistakes I've made, and seen others make, over the years.

In this post:

• Buying all the things
• Ignoring skincare triggers
• Testing all the things - at once
• Buying 'cult' products that don't suit your skin type
• Avoiding or Hoarding Samples
• Writing off all K-Makeup
• Treating makeup as sun protection

Some of these I'm guilty of, others are things I've seen crop up time and time again as things that people have done and regretted, or are doing currently and don't realize that it's something they need to reconsider.

One Shade to Flatter Them All: Clio Tension Lip #7 'Some' Review & Swatches on Fair, Medium, and Deep skin tones

Time for more fall-appropriate makeup adventures!  I'm quite excited about this post because not only do I absolutely freaking love this lipstick, thanks to the help of two lovely fellow K-Beauty bloggers, I'm going to be able to show how it looks on skin tones other than mine!

I not only love this lipstick, but it's been my go-to shade side I started using it in ... July?  (Seasonal appropriateness be damned, I love plum shades.)   I made a summer haul from Clio's official US site which included this lipstick, and was very excited about it as it was sold out on the site from which I'd been hauling, but to my sadness it didn't survive the trip.  When I opened it, the lipstick was nowhere to be found- it had melted and slid into the lid.  Nooooo!   I let Clio know about a (sunscreen) hiccup in my order which was my fault, I mentioned what happened to the lipstick, and to my delight, they offered to send me a replacement!

My pristine replacement tube, finally ready for photos.

When the weather cooled off, I contacted Clio to arrange to add my replacement lipstick to an order I was making- which is how got my hands on the new eyeshadow palette from Clio; you can check it out here: First Look & Swatches: Clio Pro Palette

In this post:

• Product Details
• Lip Swatches on NC10, NC35, and NC/NW45 skin tones
• Comparison swatches with other red/pink/purple lip products
• Final Thoughts

One of the drawbacks of looking for makeup swatches online is the swatcher may not have a similar skin tone as you- this is especially an issue with K-Beauty and deeper skin tones, which are distressingly underrepresented.  So for this post, I reached out to some friends who are both PoC K-Beauty bloggers on Instagram, and they agreed to test it out for me for comparison's sake!

Amazingly, all three of us absolutely love the lipstick despite having very different skin tones.  Swatches ahoy!

First Look & Swatches: Clio Pro Palette

This week I'm venturing out of my skincare comfort zone and into unfamiliar territory and doing a first look and swatch breakdown of the just-barely-released Clio Pro Palette, which I purchased from Clio's official US shop, Club Clio USA. In fact, I don't think this palette is available online yet, just in their NYC store, but I figured it would be helpful to have some real-life swatches available for reference for those eyeing it.

Clio, Peripera, and Goodal sample swag.

So how did I get it when it's not released online yet?  Happy accident- I didn't even realize it was not generally available yet; I was emailing back and forth with Clio to arrange for delivery of my replacement Tension Lip in 'Some' from this summer haul.  My original tube melted in summer heat, and they offered to replace it immediately, but I asked them to wait until the weather cooled and then just toss it in with the next order I made.

It's now autumn, I was prepping for an upcoming Instagram giveaway, and I wanted to purchase a few things to test while they were having their 10 Days of K-Beauty discount.  (Enabling mode: engaged and ready for action.)  I asked what sort of fall-themed makeup they recommended, since I was getting some autumnal lip shades.  They mentioned that they had the new Pro Palette and sent me a product/swatch photo, and I caved like wet cardboard.  Fall-themed colours are my weakness, and my point makeup wardrobe is scant.

It's the most wonderful time of the year (for me.)  Leaves courtesy of my non-judgemental in-laws' backyard.

Before we get into the swatches and my impressions, I need to set some expectations here: I suck at point makeup.  Put me at a table with 30+ products and ask me to put them in order of application, and like a film assassin dissembling a gun, I will have that lineup arranged before you finish wiping off your makeup.  Judging the powers of pigmentation payoff?  Snesus take the wheel.

However, what I can do is provide my thoughts on how a makeup derp like myself would fare with this palette, and frankly most Korean makeup is skewed towards minimalism, natural looks, or subtle accents.  Naturally flawless skin is a feature as important as your eyes.  This means that a lot of people (like me) have gotten into makeup due to the lessened pressure of the Korean style- I feel a lot more comfortable rocking a vivid plum in a gradient lip than the western trend of a full coverage, bold, defined lip.

In this post:

• The Packaging
• The Applicator
• The Shadows in Action (sorta)
• Pigmentation & Ease of Use
• The Swatches
• My Top Picks
• Initial Thoughts

Just a quick reminder that this is not a full review; I will need to fully test this palette so I can comment on wear time, lasting power, fallout, etc, the purpose of this "first look" is just that- first impressions and swatches of everything.  I've done them with and without primer, and tested what they look like blended together, but I'm still new to this whole ... makeup business.  Ah well, practice makes perfect.  Onward!