Pink and Undecided: sheet masks

Unboxing of Kracie Hamper from Kawaii Beauty Japan

Hallooowww :D!

Sometime around last month i joined one of Kawaii Beauty Japan's campaigns to receive and review Kracie's products, and i was lucky enough to be one of the bloggers that were given the chance to try out Kracies's products. Last week my hamper arrived and i was more than a little excited!

So excited that i decided to show you the unboxing first before reviewing them properly ^^.

But first, have you ever heard of Kracie before? I honestly have not (but i'm definitely a bit biased towards Japan, so anything that's originated from Japan-i trust immediately *LOL*), but after i had a look of their lines and products, i recognized them right away! Apparently Kracie is the brand's name (if i haven't made it clear enough, it's a Japanese brand!) and they have quite a bit of different lines, included in this hamper are Naive (which has cleansing oil and facial cleansing foams in their line) and Hadabisei (which focuses on sheet masks) and i saw them in local drugstores all the time!

Now let's get on with the unboxing process!

I saw Shasha posted her hamper's picture in her IG so i was very eagerly waiting for mine! Luckily i didn't have to wait for a long time because my own package arrived on the next day ^^!

They placed all of the products inside this pretty, golden-yellow makeup pouch with black ribbon

When i opened it i got even more excited to see the generous amount of products inside :D!

You've seen what the products are in the very first picture up there, now let's take a closer look on each items :

Kracie Naive Oil Naive Cleansing Oil. Am a HUGE fan of cleansing oil (which is now my preferred cleanser/makeup remover other than the lotion-turn-water type) so i couldn't be happier to get this! I've been using this non-stop to remove my makeup ever since i receive this and it'll be the first product that i'm going to review, stay tuned!

Kracie Naive Green Tea Facial Cleansing Foam-which i (and hunny) also been using nonstop ever since i got them! Naive also have three other variants of this facial cleansing foam : Aloe, Peach and Rose Extract.

The last but not least, three packages of Hadabisei Facial Masks :

Eslasticity, Brightening and Extra Moist

Other than these three facial mask, they also have an eye zone mask as well!

Thank you Kawaii Beauty Japan and Kracie for giving me this precious chance to try out these products! Without revealing too much (so you'll look forward to my reviews haha), i just gotta say so far i really love all of their products!

TTYL!

Pink

10:42:00 PM
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Food4Skin 01 : B.liv by Cellnique Trial Pack

b.liv

Hiii....!!!

I've noticed that a lot of Indonesian beauty bloggers been sponsored/reviewing Off with Those Heads by B.liv lately, and even though (sadly *LOL*) i am not one of them, i actually been a loyal user of Off with Those Heads for almost a year now! I've known all about B.liv years ago when they just started to get recognized in Singapore and always wanted to try it out, but to be completely honest with you-the hefty price tag and my skeptical tendency of products that claims to minimize pores and blackheads held me back, until i tried this trial pack :

No, the trial pack is not for sale (at least not that i know of), i got it from a Singapore magazine that my Singaporean aunt bought for me. FYI, it's a kickass trial kit with great products inside, that's one of the thing that i envy from overseas magazines-their awesome freebies! I often turn green with envy when those British bloggers share stories of their magazine freebies that are often worth more than 3-4 times of the magazine's price! And they give out freebies (i love the makeups, of course) without ever having tou up their magazine's price, unlike Indonesian magazines *grumbles*. Even with shitty freebies they'd raise their prices like crazy. But i digress...

First, let me tell you a little bit about the company (Cellnique) that i learned while doing some online research prior to blog about this. It's a Malaysian skin care company that was founded in 1996 (hey, i was 13 *LOL*. Some of you might not been born yet, even... *grumpy*) and launched their mass market brand Cellnique Pro-Series in 2005-which later rebranded as B.liv that we know and love now.

Anyway, after resisting the hype of B.liv (yes, they have quite a cult following, i believe) i was finally able to try them out through this trial pack, so i have heard and loved B.live long before they even start popping up in other Indonesian blogs-they're just queuing up in my "to-review" list, which as we all know is as long as Yang Tze river. If you leave it to me i'd probably review this no faster than next year, but i felt a bit left out and panicky when i saw all those other reviews so i'm speeding this up *LOL*.

Lots of B.liv products are made especially for people with oily skin and or who has lots of black/whiteheads, from that alone i should've known they are heaven sent for my skin :p.

Look at those testimonials about them, sounds too good to be true-or at least that's what i thought when i first saw them. I was so skeptical i hoard them for about a year before i finally used them (don't worry, not expired yet :p) and almost kicked myself in the head for not doing it sooner! (and how amazing was is that they even have a money back guarantee???)

Those are what's inside the trial pack : 3 sheet masks and two deluxe samples of Off with Those Heads and Oil Leviate

This is the Off with Those Heads sample, i totally missed taking picture of the front by its own, sorry! As the name already strongly suggested, it's targeted to eliminate black (and white) heads

The sample was not big, about the size of my thumb and contained 3ml of products

Consistency was thick but kinda runny clear gel (i hope you understand what i mean! It's thick as in not water like, but runny as in it would drip if you hold it upside down), it'd turn watery after a while and while you apply it on your face. You're supposed to use them every morning and night after cleansing, but you know i don't use products on my face in the morning so i only use it at night. You're also only supposed to use it on you T-zone, but i love the result so much i began using it all over my face-where i get white and blackheads-after a while.

I really love the cooling sensation it gave when you applied it (i read at the manual that you might feel a little tingling and minty sensation on your skin which is normal and only means that it's working, but i didn't experience it with the sample-i did however, experience it with my full bottle. Yes, i have a full sized product too and it's 75% finished by now!), it also leaves my skin feeling matte and super silky afterward. They also said that your skin might react by producing more oil in the first few usage, and i did experienced that. I woke up with a scarily oily face on the first use, but it gets better as fast as the next day.

I actually noticed some result after my FIRST use, can you believe that (pun intended)? I unconsciously rub my chin (where i have the most whiteheads) and i was very surprised when i felt dead skin came off, with whiteheads in them! I continued rubbing and my chin was immediately whitehead-free! I had a few bigger blackheads that usually would require crazy squeezing to clean them up, after i used Off with Those Heads, they pop out with the gentlest squeeze! I freaked out and instantly announced that i am in LOVE! LOL.

I was worried that the effect might be temporary, but it just keeps getting better everyday! I managed to squeeze out every little drip of the product out of the little bottle and used it for a whole 14 days and i really regret that i didn't take any before and after picture! It's making a whole world of difference! Not only my skin (especially around my nose area, where i have endless blackheads. I definitely used to have what people call strawberry nose!) became cleaner and i have less black/whiteheads, it's also becoming very easy to remove what i have left efficiently. After 14 days of usage i even notice how my previously hugely porous nose's skin is now greatly reduced! LOVE LOVE LOVE!

This are what they claim to do :

• Removes blackheads and whiteheads
• Keeps acne under control
• Controls oil
• Unclogs pores
• Provides a gentle exfoliation
• Has soothing and hydrating properties

I would say YES YES YES to every point! I have less acne for sure (i don't get them much in the first place but now even the rare ones becomes even rarer!!!), my skin is less oily (still very oily, but definitely not as bad as how it used to be) but not dehydrated! My pores are totally less clogged and like how i experienced in the first use, it gave a very gentle exfoliation! It's absolutely soothing and hydrating as well! I used to have a very complex skin care steps that i sometimes get too lazy to do, but with Off with Those Heads i feel like i get what my skin needs only with one product and it's so pleasant to apply that i never even feel tempted to skip it!

Like every sample reviews that i've done, i always ask myself one question : was it good enough to make me want to buy the full sized product? The answer is HELL YEAH! Like i said, i already have a full sized one that i #Undecided bought me (it's a gift! I do have the best BFF ever!) when she went for a company outing to KL. I LOVE LOVE LOVE it (i'm not done raving about this product, i might even write another full review on this product!) and now i've asked my mum who's going to Singapore next week to get me another bottle! I don't have a lot of product/brand loyalty, but i am pledging my loyalty to Off with Those Heads! Definitely a Holy Grail product for me!

Off with Those Heads can be purchased by Indonesians already (as well as their other products) via their website. The 15ml one is USD 39, 30ml USD 49 and the 45ml USD 63. Quite pricey, yes... But i say they're worth every penny!

Oil Leviate

While Off with Those Heads is argueably B.liv's most famous product, i am very glad i got to try out their other product-and one that is very suitable for my skin too as this is an oil control gel!

Oil Leviate has a very runny, clear gel consistency and it gets absorbed very fast into my skin. I actually feel that the product dries off (since it's so water-like) rather than sink in and it leaves my skin feeling very silky and smooth, matte but still moisturized. I really felt like it did keep oils at bay, when i wore it out under my usual makeup i only had to use one oil control film (instead of two, like i do usually) after around four hours.

While i really like this product too, i don't feel like it's as magical as Off with Those Heads, and i don't actually mind my oily skin (since it's not acne prone)-i feel like my oily skin is easier to deal with than dry skin anyway. There are (very rare) times when i had like, dry patches on my skin and it's so flaky and ugly, i'd rather stick to my crazy oily skin than try to turn it to a drier type. So personally, i don't think that important for my skin. I, however, love the silky smooth feeling it gave me so i prefer to use it as a primer so i can have a barrier between my skin and my makeup.

These are the claims for Oil Leviate :

• Controls oil & acne
• Sooths & hydrates skin
• Unclogs pores
• Helps remove blackheads and whiteheads
• Fades acne scars

I have not used this product long enough or in continuous pace so i cannot give a proper testimonial for this product. All i know is that it's very nice, and it really did lessen my crazy oil, and i love it as a makeup primer but at USD 35, i think i would stick to cheaper primers that has similar performance! So no, i don't think the sample made me want to buy the full sized product, maybe if it's ever on a huge sale!

Next up are their sheet masks, i would give little reviews on them individually but as a whole they're all made from Japan silk that's incredibly soft, silky and they all feel very HIGH END (but they're actually not that expensive at all!). You know, expensive and awesome, nothing like my usual cheapo drugstore/Korean sheet masks haha.

Feel No Sluggish (don't you just love their clever and witty names???) that's derived from apple and is targeted for stem cell revival

In case you're concerned about the expiry date, don't. I've used this long before the expiry date!


All three masks were transparent but not so weak that they're easily ripped, definitely made from the finest Japan silk! It fits rather nicely with my face, not too big like most of other sheet masks i've tried in the past

Feel No Sluggish was very wet and drippy, it gave me immediate (strong) cooling and tingling sensation. It has a very chemical scent (strongly reminded me of beauty clinics and their products :p) but don't worry, it's totally unnoticeable once used (and i am sensitive to weird scents. I really hate those masks that have strong sour scent, i would not be able to ignore them!). It left my skin feeling quite greasy and sticky (signs of heave moisturizing properties) but not horribly so.

Benefits of this product :

• Encourage the regeneration of skin tissue to ensure skin looks healthy and young.
• Hydrates and nourishes the skin.
• Delays multiple signs of aging.
• Provides antioxidant protection to prevent skin from free-radical damages and signs of pre-mature aging.

I only used it once and i really love how supple and smooth my skin feels afterward, but to be able to give a full testament of the long term effect i would need more than one use. It's very nice but the result for one time usage is just comparable with most sheet masks i've used before.

Like i mentioned earlier, B.liv's masks are not that expensive after all! USD 18 for a box of 7, that's not a lot more expensive than most masks like My Beauty Diary or the sorts once they entered Indonesia! I would definitely purchase the whole box for that price!

Immerse Me

Immerse Me is definitely targeted for people who needs deep moisturization, so it was no wonder that the serum's texture was on the richer, creamier side-it was not as drippy and wet as Feel No Sluggish. It has a similar, chemically scent and also felt very cooling when applied.

Surprisingly it left my skin feeling not very greasy at all (not what i expected from a thick, deep moisturizing kind of mask), even felt a little matte! It actually made my skin less oily, even a few hours later-where my skin usually would be super oily already even when i'm just using my usual moisturizer! It does, however, left my skin very soft and supple.

Benefits :

• Provides instant hydration
• Helps skin preserve its optimum moisture balance
• Improves skin water retaining ability and provides long lasting hydration

Again, i only used it one time and cannot comment on the claims, but it really was great as well-and at the same price as Feel No Sluggish (USD 18 for a box of 7), i'd also definitely purchase a box!

Sheer off Crease

Sheer off Crease, again as the name strongly suggested, is targeted to prevent fine lines and all those other signs of aging. Again, the scent was similar to the other two masks i've tried, also gave a cooling and tingling sensation-with an added bonus of itchiness (i noticed that most anti wrinkle masks gave me that kind of feeling so think it's normal? Maybe it's a sign that the product's working to de-wrinkle my skin!). It was wetter than Immerse Me but not drippy.

Benefits :

• Deeply nourishes and hydrates skin
• Prevents premature aging
• Evens the skin tone and lightens dark spots
• Has a brightening effect

Again, no comment on that yet. I like it almost as much as the other two masks (i like it a little less because of the itchiness) and again, at USD 18-something i'd definitely buy in the future.

I use sheet masks only once a week (because i don't have the patience to do it more often, and i would never remember to do so anyway. Now i have a routine of using eye patches on Saturdays and facial masks on Sundays-much easier to keep track of!) so i used all three (back to back) for a whole three weeks and i must say my skin feels very smooth, supple and healthy during and after those three weeks!

In the end i just gotta say i quite love all five products from B.Liv (and absolutely crazy over the first one! I can't recommend it enough!) and would definitely recommend this brand for everybody (just use the products that suits your skin needs, of course). Anyone who are struggling with black/whiteheads-you GOTTA try Off with Those Heads, those who are going crazy over their oily skin must try Oil Leviate and the sheet masks is great for regular use and+the price's friendly enough for an introduction to this brand!

Have you ever tried anything from B.live? Do you love them as much as i do?

#Pink

3:22:00 PM
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Indonesia Beauty Box (Free) April Box

beauty bag

Hello!

Do you remember Indonesia Beauty Box? I subscribed to their VVIP box in January because they were having a sort of "Buy 1 Get 1" promo. Every subscribers in January would get a free box/bag on random months and i was designated to get a free bag on April. I've been waiting very (im)patiently for a whole month, and it's finally here. I just received it earlier today (Wednesday, 30th of April) *LOL*, very last minute yes? They barely made it in April. Anyway, here's what it got in the free bag :

It's not much, but it IS free *LOL*. I actually was a bit confused when hunny handed me a (light) box like below this afternoon :

I wasn't waiting for any other package and i didn't remember that IBBox' located in Balikpapan haha

Then i opened it and went "Ohhh...". Actually i was expecting it to be a bit closer to the size of the box i actually subscribed last time? LOL. Wishful thinking, of course. This free bag is not half the size of that VVIP Box

It couldn't even close properly *LOL*, clearly the box's too small for the items inside :p

I usually snap two pictures of the items inside, one as a teaser photo to put on top of the page and one in the actual run down, but in my hurry (to actually post it before May start) i totally forgot to do so. So let's jump to the items inside straight away.

Etude House Collagen Moistfull Facial Mist (Full size). I noticed that IBBox' characteristic is they would give you one "star product" and everything else would be, well... extras. In this bag this facial mist is definitely the star item. I love Collagen Moistfull line and i love facial mists (especially now it's supposedly summer already and the weather's been unbearably hot and humid despite the rains lately) so i'm pretty happy to get this :)

Etude House Essential Sheet Mask (Job's Tears). Love sheet masks, and i actually been itching to get my hands on these alphabet masks so this definitely will get used

Etude House Collagen Eye Patch. Again, love eye patches, i wear them once a week (the cheapo China made, non-branded ones *LOL*) so love this one also

Err... Some no-branded oil paper. It must be a filler item, but the illustration's really cute so it's not so bad

O Hui Fresh Lotion for men (deluxe size). I just heard about this brand recently, and it's nice to see something other than an Etude House's product in the bag :p

My verdict? It's not a bad bag, especially since it's FREE. I like almost every single item in the bag (except the oil paper. I don't like oil papers, i prefer oil control films. I need to use like, 5 sheets of branded oil papers, i might need like 12 of this non-branded one *LOL*) and everything will get used, but it's certainly not MIND BLOWING. I'm also pretty happy that they featured a pretty nice star item in the bag (since it's free and all, i thought the star product might not be so nice), full sized facial mist from Etude House must not be dirt cheap, it'd definitely worth more than IDR 50.000 at least.

I was a bit disappointed to see no make up items at all in this bag though. You know i'm a cheapo, they could just throw in some local branded lipstick worth less than IDR 20.000 and i'd be very happy already *LOL*. I guess my criticism is that they pride themselves as more of a "wish granting" bag/box than your regular beauty box, when you tell them your preference and wishlist and they'd try to give your most coveted item in your box/bag-i definitely told them i preferred make ups than skin cares (when i subscribed to their January bag). But i guess as it is a free bag, the items inside probably should be generic (maybe they gave out the same items to every one who's getting free bags?) and i shouldn't complain too much *LOL*. But other than that, it's actually pretty nice!

I don't know if you know, but there were a big blow out and controversy about IBBox' method of.. errrr... Marketing. I'm not gonna talk about it here (most of you who are in the Indonesian beauty bloggers community most probably knows about it), but i'm glad everything's resolved. It's great to see them still operating (unlike some of the bigger beauty box companies that we know) and i hope they learned their lesson, that they do not need to make up stories and infiltrate the community to do shady advertising to do well in this business. Indonesia's beauty community is smart and we definitely do not like to be deceived, so it's better to be who you really are and present yourselves (as a company) as what it really is :).

I like this free bag quite a lot, and i would recommend their services to those of you who likes to receive products from well-known brands (they seem to mostly favour Etude House, and you can see here) with products you pretty much "choose" for yourself (one star product, at least) with little extras thrown in but still with a little air of surprise (since you won't really know what you're going to get until the box is in your hands). See them more of a "private buyer" for yourself. Definitely not for those of you who likes the concept of a traditional beauty box, one that you can never guess what items would be inside and with various brands (old, new, even ones you've never heard of before).

As for me, i don't think i'd be subscribing again in the near future, but if they have another exciting promo (like this Buy 1 Get 1), i think i'd be tempted :D!

That's all for now, and OMG, it's May in a few minutes. How does that happen??? 2014's almost halfway gone already! Insanity! Time, please slow down!

Freaking out a little inside

#Pink

11:59:00 PM
19 Comments

Mask-Off 02 : Providence Beauty Cherry Brightening Sparkly Mask

beauty

Hey guys!

How's your weekend so far? I had a veryyy long day (but pretty fun!) that i'm going to share with you soon (d'oh, i'm dreading the resizing pictures part zzz) but for now...

I am going to review another facial mask, which is long overdue with the fact that i use pretty much different kind of masks every week-this makes facial masks lining to be reviewed is well... About a mile long *pffffttt*.

Providence Beauty Cherry Brightening Sparkly Mask (photo taken from Sasa.com)

I am not too familiar with Providence Beauty, i'm guessing it's one of those Taiwanese facial mask brands (okay i'm not actually guessing, i just read the description in Sasa.com's page *LOL*). I also Google it but not much information came up (most probably because it's Taiwanese so most of the infos available in the web would be in Chinese and won't come up when you type their English name?). I got it from, of course, Sasa.com and seen it available in various Sasa stores (i have no idea which other stores stocks them).

In the haul post i mentioned getting it purely for the packaging *LOL*

Then i also mentioned my fear of it having glitters in them or something *LOL*

Not to worry, there's not a trace of glitter whatsoever in the mask! It looks really wet and juicy though right, drenched in goodness (serum, i mean). It also comes with a layering sheet so it's still shaped nicely (not crumpled like some sheet masks can be) and it helps when it comes to opening up the sheet. It can be a bit hard with some masks since the wetness makes the sheet stuck together, you must PEEL them with patience *LOL*. Not a problem for this mask

I always feel like rolling in the floor with laughter whenever i see my mask-ed photos! The sheet fits quite nicely to my face, just a little big too big on some parts. I clearly needed to pull it up a little bit *just realizing it now, many months after i actually used it haha*

The first thing that i noticed in most products is the scent, this one is no exception. It has a strong, cherry drop smell. This kind of strong scent can be the "make it or break it" kind of thing, i happen to actually like it very much! You know i'm always attracted to sweet, yummy scents right? This is totally up my alley, but a reviewer in Sasa.com actually hated the scent (she described it as a cherry flavored cough medicine, which i also agree. It just happens that i like that kind of scents!) followed by another who said the smell is heavenly! So... It's totally just comes to personal preferences. But if you have a very sensitive nose and hate strong, sweet scents, then you should probably stay clear from this mask.

My skin at the time i wore it was especially sensitive for some reason (that i cannot remember anymore), it was reddish and a bit painful. When i put this mask on, it really stung! But i think it was because of the ultra sensitive condition of my skin back then. The sting only lasted a few seconds, it cooled down very fast and in a few other seconds it became very very cooling and comforting instead. It was so nice, i almost didn't feel like taking it off *LOL*.

When i took it off, it dried off very fast and didn't leave a greasy trail behind (like most sheet masks do) and discovered a very surprising effect (other than the usual supple and moisturized feeling), it helped control my oily skin for up to a week! So this is probably a no no for people with dry skin.

Here's a description from Sasa.com :

Providence Beauty Cherry Brightening’s Sparkly Mask is enriched in Cherry extract, Flower Extract, Punicifolia (Acerola) Fruit Extract and Hyaluronic Acid to boost the youthfulness of your skin, letting it shine from the deepest layer.

Providence Beauty Cherry Brightening’s Sparkly Mask is a high-performance whitening treatment that effectively targets dark spots, freckles, and dullness to give an extraordinary radiance and beautifully even complexion.

About the whitening part, i don't really know. Most masks leaves my skin looking refreshed and brighter (so did this one) but it's not a permanent effect (well, i am already very fair so i'm not looking forward to be any whiter anyway!). You might notice more improvement if you wear it regularly, as well as the getting rid of spots parts.

It also claims to be suitable for all skin types, but in my own experience i'd say it's best suited for people with very oily skin like myself (i also read another review in Sasa.com that validates this, she said it's not suitable for her dry, sensitive skin).

It's a nice smelling (for those who likes Cherry Drops scents, of course), very affordable (i got it for USD 1 only!), brightening mask with a surprisingly good effect for oil control (it doesn't say anything about oil control in the description. But of course, the actual writing on the packaging is totally in Chinese so i have no idea what's written there!).

Recommending it for people with very oily skin looking for a fast remedy (that works for a period of time, in my case it was a little more than a week) to reduce the sebum on their skin, likes sweet scents and with limited budget.

Not recommending it for people with dry, sensitive skin and those who cannot stand strong, artificial fruit scents.

Will i repurchase this? Yes, why not? I will not purposefully order it by itself in Sasa.com (and it's OOS at the website right now anyway) but i will add it to my virtual cart if and when i shop there, or if i see it anywhere on my travel (if i am not attracted to other masks first. There are hundreds of attractive face mask packaging out there you know, especially those Hello Kitty ones *weak on cuteness*). It's not that amazing that i have to repurchase it right away, but it's nice enough for me to want to buy it again (especially because it's so cheap).

Would you put on a cherry drop smelling mask on your face?