Tuesday 25 June 2013

Beauty | Tuesday Teasings: Korean Skincare Wishlist

Hello lovelies!

I can't be the only one that likes alliteration in their titles, right? I've named this Tuesday Teasings as for one thing, obviously, it's Tuesday, and Teasings as I'm literally teasing myself by looking at all the pretty things I want but can't buy for another 79 days! Stupid spending ban. But, I have to face facts that while I try to get back on my feet after the expenses of moving out, which I'm failing spectacularly at. I can't be spending money willy nilly (haha, willy). So I decided to put together a little wishlist of the Korean skincare products I'm lusting after right now (with a sneaky Japanese one thrown in for good measure). Enjoy!

Mizon Blackhead Three Step Kit
I chose this three step kit because I have always struggled with blackheads. I've never truly tried to tackle them aside from a few dabbles with Clearasil scrubs when I was a teenager, and one time I tried a tip I saw on Pinterest involving baking soda; safe to say neither worked, and both dried my skin out really badly. I've never been able to stick with a cleanser as if I use it more than three days in a row, my nose starts to peel horrendously. This three step kit from Mizon starts with opening up the pores with a heat gel, after which you apply the pack, then close and soothe the pores with the cooling serum. I'd love to try this!

Mizon Snail Recovery Gel Cream
One thing that's fairly big in Korea skincare is the use of snail mucus, which they say helps to reinforce and tighten up skin. Now, I don't know if that's true, I haven't exactly bothered to research the beauty benefits of snail slime before, but it's quite a big trend overseas at the moment, so I would hope that there is some truth to it. I'd love to try this as if its promises are true, then I'd walk away with skin "full of moisture and nutrition", although the idea of rubbing snail mucus on my face definitely puts me off a little...
Holika Holika Daily Garden Cleansing Foam
Now although I'd chosen to save the Aloe version in my eBay wishlist, I decided to include the whole range as ideally I'd like to own them all haha. The Aloe version says it's good for moisturising, and that it calms sensitive and stressful skin. Acerora claims to provide your skin with vitality and elasticity thanks to fruit and amino acids and vitamins, Lemon claims to make your skin bright and contains a lot of Vitamin C, Green Tea claims to reduce your skin waste, care for your skin tone and help keep your skin's water and oil balance, and Olive says it contains Vitamin E and helps provide your skin with moisture and nutrients. I'd love to own all five to switch up between them depending on what my skin needs at the time, but at the moment I'm leaning more towards Green Tea and Aloe. Maybe Lemon. I can't choose!

Meishoku Detclear Facial Peeling Gel
Here's the cheeky little Japanese addition! I had to add it in here as it's the only Japanese skincare product I have in my wishlist. It's a peeling gel that claims to gently remove dead skin and dirt from your skin, whilst also unclogging pores and brightening your skin tone, making pores less visible. I first heard of this after Danny from Adventures After Hours reviewed it. He also has quite a penchant for Japanese fashion and beauty products, although he luckily gets to explore and "adventure" through Japan more often than I, so I quite trust his judgement. I think this will be one of the first things I pick up when my spending ban lifts.

From left to right:
Holika Holika Pig-Nose Clear Blackhead Steam Starter
Holika Holika Pig-Nose Clear Blackhead Peeling Massage Gel
Holika Holika Pig-Nose Clear Blackhead Deep Cleansing Oil Balm
Holika Holika Pig-Nose Clear Blackhead Cleansing Sugar Scrub
Holika Holika Pig-Nose Clear Blackhead 3 Step Kit
Holika Holika Pig-Nose Clear Blackhead Perfect Sticker
One of my favourite picks in this wishlist, the Holika Holika Pig Nose Black Head Clear series is not only bright and adorable, but it's designed to tackle just what I need tackling the most! You can choose from the 3 Step Kit, Deep Cleansing Oil Balm, Peeling Massage Gel, Steam Starter, Perfect Sticker, or Cleansing Sugar Scrub. I aim to own them all at one time or another, each works on your blackheads in a different way, so if you want to know the details you'd be best off clicking on any of the links. The series is fairly cheap and cheery, with enough variety to keep me coming back for more.
Shara Shara Snail Source Repair Cream
Shara Shara Water Level Up Cream
Shara Shara Precious Cream
Shara Shara Hinoki Spa Cream
I didn't want to analyse each one of these four products, so I decided to group them together as a whole, especially as I'm aiming to own all four of them at some point! I think this collection has something for every way you could want to improve your skin, from taking advantage of the famous benefits of snails with Snail Source Repair Cream, to boosting your moisture levels for dry skin with Water Level Up, Precious Cream guaranteeing to provide vitality and nutrients, and Hinoki Spa claiming to balance and refresh your skin, as if you'd just had a spa day.

This serum is one in an 11 product series, and is designed to brighten up your skin with the help of Vitamin C and green tea components. This glorious little bottle claims to tighten your pores and leave skin luminous and fair. Seeing as I'm mainly focusing on pores (casually referred to my face as the moon earlier due to the craters that are my pores... attractive), this serum sounds like heaven in a bottle, and I may do some casual browsing into the other ten serums in the range. Sorry bank balance!

Shara Shara White Girl's Cream
Ignoring its mildly racist name, I do really want this Cream by Shara Shara. It's designed to brighten and even your skin tone, although it does intend to literally whiten your skin using rice extract. Whitening your skin is fairly popular in Korea, and although I do love being pale, I'd be scared of using this too often in case I get the opposite effect of floating foundation head, with my face several shades paler than my body. However, I think sparse and moderate use of this could definitely improve my skin tone, banishing any blotches and redness that may appear. It's quite expensive, so I'm assuming it's fairly potent or respected at delivering results, so if I got this I would be using it sparingly ahahaha.


And there you have it, my wishlist of Korean skincare! I hope I'll get to own at least a few of these products when my spending ban finally comes to an end. What skincare are you loving at the moment? Do you have a skincare wishlist?

Bye! x

All links updated with new listings or alternative products where necessary 13/02/2015

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Monday 24 June 2013

Fashion | Monday Musings: Why Isn't It Autumn Yet?

Hello everyone! Super long time no speak :(

As I mentioned in my previous little update post, my flat is still without internet, and will be until this Saturday. Very sad times, I've missed blogging! I'm actually sneaking this post in during work hours, whooops. I did the same with the redesign, a bit of sneaky blog header changing on a Friday, standard. I hope the new title "Neko To No Tanoshii" (Fun With Cat) will reflect more of what my blog will be about :)

Now, I know it's fairly taboo to say, but I don't like summer... there, I said it! I'm just not a fan. I like being pale, I don't like sunscreen, I don't like being hot, I don't like getting my legs or arms out, and I don't like the disappointment of everyone around me when summer in England, yet again, doesn't live up to their expectations, and rains 90% of the time. I love snow, I love Christmas, and I love layering up with pretty cardigans and jumpers, and the cute mittens you can buy, and gorgeous rough and ready boots instead of everyone getting their grubby toes out in sandals... ew. Just me?

Already, stores are looking towards their Autumn/Winter collections, and I for one am super excited about them! For one thing, my spending ban ends on the 12th September (20 days in and still going strong!), just 80 days away, which is perfect timing! This post is a collection of all gal/gyaru fashion for Autumn/Winter, or what can be used for those seasons from the Spring/Summer collections with the help of a little layering ;)

Lev Ricoeur Yul Jacket - Golds Infinity
Dot Tulle Shorts - MA*RS
Kathy Slim V-Neck Top - Golds Infinity

For a casual Autumn look, I love this thick black cardigan layered over these shorts with the cute polka dot netting inlay, paired with a simple beige and black striped t-shirt. Combine this outfit with a thick pair of black tights, sturdy boots and a parka, and you're sorted.

Total Lace Shirt - Cecil McBee
Bi-Colour Ribbon Dawley Coat - Golds Infinity
Striped Peplum Shorts - Golds Infinity
Wood Heel Booties - EGOIST
Rose Headband - Duras
I tried to put a little more thought into this one, and as always, tights are a must at all times. In case you couldn't tell, I love tops and shirts tucked into shorts. LOVE IT. I've been delving into my Japanese fashion a lot more recently, and these are a couple of the outfits I'd love to get in time for Autumn/Winter. Some of these items are from the Spring/Summer collection so maybe by the time my spending ban is up I'll be able to get some of these bad boys in the sale.
Have you started thinking about Autumn/Winter fashion yet? What do you think of my picks?
Bye! x
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Friday 14 June 2013

Lifestyle | Update: Still No Internet

There's still no Internet in the flat :( I have photos on my laptop waiting to be put into lovely little blog posts, but no Internet to do it with.
The BT guy came round today to install our modemy thing (technical term ahaha), but something or other wasn't matching up with our block of flats or something? I dunno what was wrong, but essentially my boyfriend and I took a day off work for nothing, leaving me to while away a whole ten hours on Skyrim... not that I was complaining! :)
Can I just say that I hate the Blogger app? Ugh. But anyways, just an update to let you all know I'm not dead, and I do have some posts coming up as soon as we get the stupid Internet :')
Bye! x
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Tuesday 11 June 2013

Beauty | Holika Holika Petit BB Cream Review (Korean Cosmetics)






Apologies for the last picture being blurry, I just could not get my camera to focus properly! Not that it matters, seeing as all the writing is in Korean and I doubt anyone that reads my blog can read Korean... the symbols are beautiful though. It's one of my life goals to learn Korean, but Japanese comes first. And before that comes my HNC in Business.

Anyway! Hello you lovely lot, it's been a little while. I bought three Korean beauty products from eBay a few weeks ago, but as I'm weird I wanted to wait until I had a full face worth of make-up before I reviewed any of the items I bought, so I could properly compare them to English products. However, seeing as I'm on a spending ban (household items not included as I just moved out), I can't buy any new products until the ones I currently own run out. I'm more impatient than weird, so I decided to try out all three products and review them!

I've used this product a few times now, but I got such a shock when I first splodged a bit out on my hand! Despite the fact that it says BB on the front (I didn't know this until recently, but Japan and Korea, etc. had BB creams long before Europe or the US!), because it also said "Clearing" I convinced myself that it was a skincare product designed for clearing the skin, not make-up! So I was not in the least expecting brown liquid to come out when I squeezed the bottle, but I quickly got over my shock and now I love this little guy, and not just because it has a cute little cat on the tube!

It is a tiny bit dark for my skin tone, mainly because I'm scary pale, but it does blend in really well. It evens my skin tone as well as hides my pores, which I feel are quite noticeable in my T-zone area, so any hiding of these is welcomed! I do feel like I have to wear a bit more face powder across the jawline to hide any colour change between my neck and face, but other than that I absolutely love this product. I don't need a lot of this to make my skin look healthy and clear, and I have noticed that my skin isn't too bad recently, so maybe there's some truth to the clearing properties. The info they have on eBay (that's written in English) says that the Tea Tree extract in this BB cream "guarantees lovely, baby-like skin".

I do really like this product, and I would recommend it to anyone that was considering branching outside of the range of UK cosmetics, or anyone looking to try a new BB cream. Would you possibly try this BB cream? Have you tried any other Korean Cosmetics?

Bye! x
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Thursday 6 June 2013

Games | The Last of Us

Look what I've got! I've been excited about this bad boy for a good long while now, and now it's finally here...


Pinched the image from my Instagram as I still can't find my camera, whoops!

I'm lucky enough to sometimes receive promotional copies of games at work, and this game is one that I was beyond hoping I would receive. In fact, I think it's the first game I've looked forward to since Ni No Kuni, which I still haven't completed despite investing 50 hours of my life into it so far... JRPGs will be the death of me.

Today is seriously good timing as well! My boyfriend is going to be at his saying goodbye to a few more of his friends and his Mum as we're moving on Saturday (eeeeeeeeeek!), and I no longer have college meaning my Thursday night is wiiiiiide open to do nothing but play this!! (Ignoring packing, which I'm sooo far behind in doing)

I'm going to try to blog fairly regularly about this game, as I know it's one that a lot of people are interested in, but fair warning that there'll probably be tons of spoilers in every post. I'm really bad at playing through a whole game and then writing just one long piece about it, so I'm going to try my hand at doing updates at regular intervals throughout the game. I'm not one of those people who makes it their life mission to get all the Trophies a game has to offer, so there'll be no mention of those probably. I'll most likely just talk about the storyline, mainly characters and missions and if I'm enjoying it, basically. I'll have to write one main blog piece for work, so for this blog I'm going to take my sweet time and just enjoy it. This may mean I'll be enjoying it too much to stop to blog about it, but if that happens I'm not going to mind :)

Are any of you looking forward to playing this game? What games are you currently playing and/or loving?

Bye! x
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Tuesday 4 June 2013

Lifestyle | 100 Day Spending Ban



This may seem like old hat in the bloggersphere, but the time has come for me to do a 100 day spending ban. Sadly enough, becoming an independent adult is making my bank balance cry. With a £225 application fee for the flat and then a deposit of £625 all in the space of a week, plus car payments, you name it, it all came out of my account on payday. After paying my friend back and foolishly going out on the weekend, I literally have £20 to my name, despite getting paid three days ago...

I don't even know how that happened! Thankfully my boyfriend owes me £100 or so for his half of the application fee, so at least I know I'll be able to get petrol for this month. Maybe. Not including the costs of the kittens we're getting next week or installing BT... I've decided that until I get back to normal and get used to paying rent for the first time in my entire life, I probably should be spending money on things I don't really need, like yet another eyeliner. Or a Subway or a double vodka and Coke.

My ban will end the 12th September. Ugh, that seems like forever away! And just in time to spend all my money on everybody's Christmas presents ahahaha. Whilst I would love to scrimp wherever I can, things like my Xbox Live and Spotify Premium memberships can't be tampered with. I think the only exceptions will be getting my monthly Cosmo and repurchasing products from my daily make-up routine that I've run out of. But considering there's a Subway five minutes from my new flat, I'm betting that not getting a sandwich is going to be more difficult than not buying a lipstick ahaha.

Have any of you done a 100 day spending ban before? Any tips would be greatly appreciated :)

Bye! x
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Monday 3 June 2013

Beauty | Ebay Wishlist: Korean Make-Up


* = alternate links, as the original product is no longer available
** = the full Tonymoly Pig-Nose series is no longer available under one listing, so this is a link to a post I did featuring separate links to each individual product of the series

As my previous post may have tipped you off, I'm a little bit in love with Asian/Oriental culture, fashion, music, you name it. I've been lucky enough to visit China (Beijing and Xi'an) and Japan (Tokyo and Kyoto), and they were the most amazing few weeks of my life. I cried all the way home for twelve hours straight on the flight back from Kyoto to boring old England ahahaha. Whilst China was absolutely beautiful and almost magical in terms of history and its famous landmarks, Japan was where I had always wanted to go, ever since I was a child, and it did not disappoint.

My love for the Orient expanded past my obsession with Japan to becoming obsessed with Korean music and fashion. And this leads me on to my currently 88-item long wishlist on Ebay... but come on, how pretty does Korean make-up look?? It looks beautiful in terms of packaging, etc., and hopefully it'll make me look beautiful too ;)

I decided not to include all 88 items from my wishlist, as it does seem a bit excessive, even to me. In my defence, a few of them are just different colours/types of the same product, like number 7 is included about four times as that particular skin care series ranges from pore strips, to cleansing gel, to steaming (?), and more, and number 6 is listed twice in my list as I want to try both the pink and coral colours. I decided on these 13 items to show the versatility of the range of Korean cosmetics and skincare available on Ebay, and put together an entire skin care and make-up routine, even including the make-up bag (12) I'd carry it all around in, 'cause come on, how cute are those kitties?!

I've bought three items already not pictured above, they arrived a couple of weeks ago but I don't want to use them yet as I want to do a full feature on the difference between my current English make-up routine (I don't have a skincare routine currently, I know shock horror ahahaha), and a Korean make-up routine (and skincare, but I won't be able to compare it to anything), to fully compare and contrast the difference in make-up for these two countries. Unfortunately, despite how cheap all the products are (and all have free delivery!), I'm too poor to do any sort of shopping right now, as I've just paid the deposit for the flat my boyfriend and I are moving in to on Saturday (excited!!), and don't even have enough to get petrol for this week, let alone enough to last me the month :( Actually debating doing a 100 day spending ban to help me out, despite that being old news in the bloggersphere...

Back on topic! I hope you'll enjoy checking out all those different products and maybe having a look for some of your own. I've heard of some other Korean websites that are quite good for cosmetics, etc., so if anyone likes this post I might do a follow up. As beauty bloggers, I know how we all like to find and try new products, so hopefully this will open up some new areas to some of you to explore :)

Bye! x
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