Kate Tokyo CC Lip Cream

It's no secret that I'm not a great fan of Kate Tokyo, a.k.a. Tokyo Kate, a.k.a. Kate Kanebo, or whatever else you want to call it.

Their eye products are the pits, and it surprises me to no end that they tend to get high marks amongst the users of @Cosme (a very influential Japanese beauty portal). But that just proves that Japanese women have the worst possible taste when it comes to mascaras, that's all.

When the CC Lip Cream thingie debuted last year I was very careful to avoid it. Yet those damn tubes were everywhere. Literally everywhere. And always featured very prominently.

The fact that there were never any testers available was the first giant giveaway that the entire campaign was pure bullshit. Why? Because the products hint very heavily that they are more than just lowly lip balms. The spinmasters at Kanebo want us to believe that Kate Tokyo CC Lip Cream is a step, or two, or three, above lowly lip balm. That it's "natural makeup".

But, with no testers we either have to believe the promo machine, or embrace our inner skeptical b*tch, like I tend to do. Because what other products don't usually offer testers? Yep, lip balms.

So yeah, we have lip balms with a touch of color. Not even lip glosses. Just your plain, old, garden variety tinted lip balms.

With a fancy name like CC Lip Cream they want to pretend they are new and cool and oh-so-hip and exciting.

Kanebo claims there are two types of Kate Tokyo CC Lip Cream:

• lip stain (01- Beat Red, 04 - Orange Burst), and
• lip color enhancer (05 - Pink Trick, 06 - Mode Pink).

As you can see I have all four, and honestly, I couldn't see any difference in performance between them. It's just a freakin' tinted lip balm, for chrissakes!

It's a decent tinted lip balm, but not without faults. And the biggest of those faults?
When it's freezing outside and your lips are cold this thing turns into a layer of goo that looks OK when your lips are closed. But when you open your mouth? Boy, oh boy...
You end up looking like you're frothing at the mouth. The sticky white demarcation line is clearly visible.

A minor fault would be the incredibly cheap and malfunction-prone tube.

But hey, for less than 400 yen (and these are always on sale), you can't really complain too much.

Here are the swatches of Kate Tokyo CC Lip Creams in all the colors:

See? I told you! Tinted lip balm.

According to the Kate Tokyo (no more rules) website, these CC Lip Creams are 5-in-1 products.
Here, I screenshot it for you (yes, I'm lazy):

The most interesting part is that they are:

• SPF 19 PA++, and 
• can be used as makeup base.

Other lofty claims:

• Moisturizing? Yeah, they are OK. Nothing special. DHC Lip Cream it ain't, that's for sure.
• Long lasting? You gotta be kidding, right?
• Color correction? They do offer a touch of color, but that's about it. I suppose the full effect depends on the natural color of your lips.
• Lip gloss (for shades 01 and 04)? Surely, you can't be serious! 

So yeah, it's a lip balm. A sheer lip balm with a hint of color.
A lip balm enhanced with olive oil, almond oil, jojoba oil and sodium hyaluronate.

An OK lip balm, especially for warmer weather.
On cold days you risk looking like you didn't wipe off your mouth after a vigorous blowjob session. Consider yourself warned.

Shu Uemura Drawing Pencils

I got really mad a few weeks ago and in a fit of anger tossed all the horrid Clio Gelpresso eyeliners I had gotten not so long before. After the fiasco of Etude House Play 101 pencils (garbage), and Tosowoong eyeliners (also garbage), I don't know what I expected from Clio. A miracle perhaps?

Well, I got more garbage instead.
There will be no review of Clio, because honestly, who cares. All you need to know about what I think of Clio Gelpresso eyeliners, you already have read above.

It is in such frustrating moments that I realize, time and again, that I much rather prefer western eye makeup. Especially, makeup that doesn't require a Jedi master level brush skills. Because I hate makeup brushes so much that my groin hurts.

And that brings us to today's contestants - Shu Uemura Drawing Pencils. They are exactly that - simple, old-school eye pencils, eye liners, eye whatevers. No need for fancy names here. You want chubby caviar cream shadow sticks, then go elsewhere.
You want simple, functional, easy to use, everything-proof pencils, then Shu Uemura's got you covered.


Kilka tygodni temu wkurzylam sie strasznie i wywalilam te koszmarki Clio Gelpresso do oczu. Dlaczego? Bo po klapie jaka okazaly sie byc kredki Etude House Play 101 (dno i wodorosty), i Tosowoong kredki do oczu (bardzo blisko dna), sama nie wiem czego oczekiwalam od Clio. Cudu moze? (linki do obu wpisow w paragrafie powyzej)

Zamiast cudu dostalam kolejne gowna.

Nie bedzie recenzji kredek Clio, bo wszystko co mam do powiedzenia na ich temat, jest w zdaniu powyzej. 

I to w chwili wlasnie takiej frustracji zdalam sobie sprawe, po raz n-ty, ze wole zachodnie specyfiki do makijazu oczu niz koreanskie. A zwlaszcza wole specyfiki, ktore nie wymagaja ode mnie umiejetnosci poslugiwania sie pedzlem na poziomie mistrza Jedi. Bo ja nienawidze pedzli do makijazu.

I ta pedzlowa nienawisc przynosi nam dzisiejszych zawodnikow - Shu Uemura Drawing Pencils. Zwykle, proste, tradycyjne eyelinery. Nie potrzeba im zadnych fikusnych nazw.
Jesli podniecaja cie chubby caviar cream shadow sticks, to nie czytaj dalej. 
Ale jesli szukasz solidnych, funkcjonalnych, latwych w obsludze, i nie do zdarcia kolorowych olowkow do mazania po oczach, to Shu Uemura oferuje wlasnie to.

"Wait! Didn't you say 'western' eye makeup?", I hear you say.
"So why the hell you're talking about Shu Uemura, you crazy bitch", I hear you say. "Isn't Shu Uemura, like, you know, Japanese, and stuff?"

All valid questions (and don't you just love having these discussions with the voices in your head?), but the answers may be different from what you expect.

Yes, "western" eye makeup, because Shu Uemura Drawing Pencils are made in Germany. In the same factory that makes eye liners and eye crayons for Maybelline and Lancome.
How come?

All three are L'Oreal brands.

Yes, my dear lovelies, in case you didn't know, now you know, Shu Uemura is a L'Oreal brand.

So while Shu might have been a purely Japanese concept once upon a time when the earth was still young, now it's firmly in the hands of its French overlords.

It's the opposite of NARS, which is actually owned by Shiseido...


"No ale zaraz! Mowilas, ze wolisz zachodnie kosmetyki do oczu. Wiec dlaczego teraz gledzisz o Shu Uemura?" - sie pytasz.
"Przeciez Shu Uemura to japonska marka, czyz nie?" -  to tez dobre pytanie.

Niestety odpowiedz na nie moze byc inna niz moglibysmy sie spodziewac.

Tak, "zachodnie kosmetyki", bo Shu Uemura kredki do oczu produkowane sa w Niemczech. W tej samej fabryce, ktora robi kredki dla Lancome i Maybelline.
A dlaczego tam?

Bo wszystkie te trzy marki pochodza ze stajni L'Oreal.

Tak, moi drodzy. Choc nazwa jest japonska, to Shu Uemura jest jedna z wielu marek nalezacych do firmy L'Oreal.
Poczatki Shu Uemury byly japonskie, ale to bylo dawno temu w galaktyce daleko stad. Teraz Shu nalezy do miedzynarodowego koncernu jakim jest L'Oreal.

Czyli dokladnie odwrotnie niz NARS, bo ta marka nalezy do japonskiego koncernu - Shiseido.

~~~


Anyway, where were we?

Ah yes, Shu Uemura Drawing Pencils...

Ale o czym mysmy tu sobie gadu gadu rozmawiali?
No tak, o Shu Uemura Drawing Pencil kredkach do oczu.

I bought my first two Shu Uemura Drawing Pencils last year, in Seoul, of all places. I had no intention of buying any eye stuff. I went over to the Shu counter at Lotte department store to play with foundations. But the sales boy there (yep, he looked like a boy to me, cute and adorable) was so crafty, he actually convinced me I absolutely needed these pencils.

He put his hand in mine and said, in English, "please rub this".

It had been a long time since a young, good looking man asked me to rub anything of his, so I jumped at the chance.

He pointed to the colorful stripes on his hand and challenged me to smudge them. I accepted the challenge and rubbed with all my might, but the stripes stayed put and wouldn't budge.

"Give me them there crayons," I heard myself say.
The boy did my eye makeup to help me choose which colors I preferred, selected a mountain of samples, and said that if I paid cash, he could give me even more free stuff.

I paid cash.

These are the colors I got in Seoul:


Moje pierwsze Shu Uemura Drawing Pencils kupilam w Seulu w zeszlym roku. Nie mialam zamiaru kupowac niczego do oczu. Poszlam do Lotte departamentu macac Shu'owe podklady. Ale chloptas obslugujacy stoisko (tak chloptas, slodki i uroczy) pokazal mi, ze absolutnie i koniecznie potrzebuje tych kredek w moim zyciu. Jak sprzedawca spisal sie na szostke. A nawet na siodemke.

Zlapal mnie za reke, polozyl swoja dlon na mojej, spojrzal mi gleboko w oczy, i powiedzial "potrzyj troche." Oj to byly juz wieki cale, kiedy mlody, dorodny chlopak prosil mnie o potarcie czegokolwiek na swoim ciele, wiec ochoczo zabralam sie do dziela.

On wskazal ma kolorowe paski na swoim przedramieniu i kazal je rozmazac. Dalam z siebie wszystko, pewnie skore bym mu zdarla, ale paski zostaly nienaruszone.

"Dawaj mi te teraz tu kredki! Chce je natychmiast!" wyszlo z moich ust jak odruch bezwarunkowy.

Chloptas umalowal mi oko, zeby dobrac odpowiednie kolory. I powiedzial, ze jak zaplace gotowka, to moze mi dorzucic wiecej probek i miniowek niz zwykle.
Zaplacilam gotowka.

Kolory, ktore kupilam w Seulu, to te:

• Left / po lewej - Shu Uemura Drawing Pencil in M (matte) Brick Brown 84
• Right / po prawej - Shu Uemura Drawing Pencil in P (pearly) Light Orange 21

And yes, you also see a sharpener, because that is the only thing that pisses me off about these pencils. They are very old-school, you gotta sharpen them.

I had plans to buy more, so once I returned to Japan, I hopped over to the Omotesando Shu branch, and promptly gave up.

The worst customer service ever.

Let's just say that it was so bad it successfully put me off visiting any Shu Uemura counters in Japan for over a year.

Instead, I had to wait for international trips and shop duty free.

And probably it would have stayed that way, if not for my friend who asked me to pick up a few things for her at the old Fukudaya shopping mall last weekend.

Yep, there was a Shu Uemura counter there. Yep, the staff was clueless and unhelpful. Next time, damn it, I'm gonna shop online. I'm done with those Shu morons.

I picked up one more drawing pencil. And a bunch of things that my friend wanted.

The pencils come packaged in foil, because apparently, Shu is too cheap for proper boxes:

Wzielam jeszcze jeden z tych olowkow. I pare rzeczy, ktorych domagala sie kolezanka.
Olowki te sa zapakowane tylko w folie, bo jak widac, niestety Shu jest zbyt skapy (oszczedny?) na porzadne pudelka:

This is a nightmare when you buy them at the airport, as the pencil is at the mercy of your purse.

The silver one is a limited edition design - Maison Kitsune for Shu Uemura, and unlike the others, this one is called "play & remix drawing pencil". How very fancy.

Brak pudelka to koszmar jesli kupuje sie na lotnisku, bo wiadomo, ze w torbie w samolocie cuda sie dzieja.
Ten srebrny to edycja limitowana - Maison Kitsune dla Shu Uemura, i choc jest identyczny jak cala ich reszta, ten nazywa sie "play & remix drawing pencil." No bo musialo byc edycyjnie i limitowanie.

Not sure who would be interested in eyeliner ingredients, but here they are:

Nie wiem kogo interesowalby sklad kredki do oczu, ale w razie czego tutaj jest:

And yes, indeed, they are made in Germany:

No i rzeczywiscie, sa robione u sasiadow za Odra:

Shu Uemura Drawing Pencils come in four different finishes:
Shu Uemura Drawing Pencils sa dostepne w czterech rowznych wykonczeniach

• M - for matte / matowy
• G - for glitter / brokatowy (z drobinkami)
• P - for pearly / perlowy (opalizujacy)
• ME - for metallic / metaliczny

There are 21 colors in all, I think.
I have these:

Dostepnych jest ponoc 21 odcieni.
Ja mam te:

Unedited photo in natural light.

Shu Uemura Drawing Pencils:

• - ME Purple 71
• - P Light Orange 21
• - G Gold 93
• - M Chestnut Brown 81
• - P Light Green 52
• - G Silver 92
• - M Brick Brown 84

What do I like about them?
They are soft. Their consistency and texture are perfect. They are beautifully pigmented. They are easy to apply. They don't tug and don't pull. They don't smudge and stay perfect until it's time to remov eyour eye makeup. They can be blended, but you gotta blend fast. Once these babies set, you'll need a serious eye makeup remover to remove them. According to the description, they can be used as a liner, or a shadow.

What don't I like about them?
You gotta sharpen these f*ckers.

Co w nich lubie? 
Sa mieciutkie. Tekstura i konsystencja to czysta perfekcja. Napigmentowanie - bajka. Latwe w obsludze. Nie szarpia i nie ciagna. Nie rozmazuja sie i siedza na oczach az do chwili demakijazu. Mozna je blendowac, ale trzeba do robic cholernie szybko. Inaczej kolor zastygnie i wtedy bez dwufazowki ani rusz. Wedlug opisu producenta, mozna je uzywac do rysowania kresek (eyeliner), albo jako cien na powieke (eyeshadow).

Co w nich nie lubie?
Trzeba je temperowac.

See? It's not that hard to make a perfect eye pencil. You can't compare the Etude Houses of this world to Shu Uemura. A L'Oreal brand, or not.

I wanted you to rub my hand, too. Because they really don't smudge, so I made this handy gif:

Widzicie? Nie jest tak trudno wyprodukowac kredke idealna (no prawie, bo to ostrzenie ostrzynka to tak old-skoolowo). Nie ma co porownywac Etude House'ow tego swiata do Shu Uemura. 

Ja tez chcialam, zeby ktos wdziecznie pocieral moja reke, wiec zrobilam tego gifa. Bo te Drawing Pencils naprawde sie nie smuza. 

My first ever gif, yay!!!
Now it can only get better.

How much is a Shu Uemura Drawing Pencil going to cost you? Anywhere from 22 to 27 dollars a pop, depending on where in the world you are, and if you are shopping duty free.

Too much for you?

Well, guess what?
This is so unexpected that even I am surprised. It turns out that Maybelline Vivid and Smooth Liners by EyeStudio are quite respectable dupes for Shu.

I suppose I shouldn't be surprised. After all, both Shu Uemura and Maybelline are L'Oreal brands, and both of them make their pencils in the same factory in Germany.

So, what do I love more than Shu Uemura Drawing Pencils?
Shu Uemura Drawing Crayons, that's what!
Stay tuned!

MakeRemake Cloud All-In-One Cleanser 001

Every once in a while a product has been hyped so much that when it finally arrives, the expectations are quite high. And in extremely rare instances, the product actually lives up to all the hype.

This is not one of those stories.

Make-Remake Cloud All-In-One Cleanser 001 came to me in the November edition of Glossybox (Korean version).

There were other things in the box as well, but they are not important (the BB cream was too dark and nasty, Avene I know and usually use as a hand cream, Bodycology spray was so vile that it was only good as a room freshener, and that mini-set of hair and body stuff I haven't tried yet).

What was important was that full size jar of Make-Remake Cloud All-In-One Cleanser 001.

Make-Remake is a new brand from LG Household and Healthcare, the home of su:m37, The History of Whoo, Isa Knox, The Saga of Xiu and many, many others...
Yes, LG. No, it's not a typo. It's a huge company and they make all sorts of other things besides TVs and smartphones.

So... what's different about Make-Remake?
It's a brand that focuses solely on cleansing - face cleansing, body cleansing, hair cleansing. Haven't seen any feminine cleansers in the lineup, though, so if you're looking for that, you'll need to look elsewhere.

Here's the official blurb in English - brand intro as seen on the official LG website.

See this? It's not just any old cleansing, because "All MAKEREMAKE’s cleansers contain natural ingredients including Wheat Sprout Juice™ and Vital Grains™."


Hmmm... Whatever they are, they must be truly unique if LG had gone to the trouble of actually trademarking those godawful names... I know of a few things that sprout vital juices, but none of them are grains, or have anything to do with wheat...

The wheat and vital grains that they're talking about seem to be: lentils, oats, rye, and amaranth.

Make-Remake, or rather MAKEREMAKE, call themselves "cleansing curators". You'd think that if you're going to give yourself such a cheesy and pretentious title, at least you should be able to curate a half-way decent cleanser, right?

So, did the folks behind Make-Remake manage this feat, or not?

The answer is "or not" and I could end my review right here, right now.

And my initial plan was to do just that. But that was before Tracy from Fan-b posted her review of four Make-Remake products - link here.

Honestly, I thought that perhaps we each got a different cleanser.

But no, I checked the label, it says 001 on mine. You see, MakeRemake, in addition to horribly annoying, long-ass names, also very conveniently provides numbers for all their products.

Just double checking... Yep, it's the same cleanser... Make-Remake Cloud All-In-One Cleanser. No mistake here.

If you're seeing just a plastic bag, that's not because the box got damaged during transport. There is no box. All products come packaged in ziplock-type plastic baggies. Very convenient, nothing will get soaking wet if a bottle, or a jar, suddenly starts leaking.

Tracy said that Make-Remake Cloud All-In-One Cleanser was a good second step cleanser (to be used after makeup removal and oil or balm cleansing).

I can't agree, unfortunately.

This is such a mediocre product that if I had purchased it on my own, I'd be furious at myself.
It doesn't cleanse, it couldn't remove the residue of DHC Deep Cleansing Oil, it wouldn't rinse, it left my skin feeling dry and stripped.

After a week of daily usage I could see that it was starting to break me out. I suspected the fact that it was so difficult to rinse off was the culprit. I had to follow it with yet another cleanser to make sure that my face was free of any Make-Remake residue.

Despite its low pH (Tracy tested it as 5, as you can see in my photo, it looks more like pH6, incidentally, that's also the pH of our tap water), it left my face feeling dry and stripped. Following it with another cleanser (Minon Whip Wash) took care of those symptoms.

But sorry, I have no use for a cleanser that I have to follow with another cleanser...

It comes in a 90 gram jar.

There was a spatula in the baggie, along with a Korean language leaflet.

The main selling points of this cleanser seem to be its texture and slight acidity (as per the blurb on the official page).
They call it "cloud", I call it "cottage cheese." Both start with "c", close enough for me.

Yes, it's fragranced, however, my usually very sensitive nose was OK with this smell. To me it seemed like a clean, generic "cleanser" scent, if you know what I mean.

Is the texture really so novel and exciting? Outside of Asia - perhaps.
In Asia? No.
A few years ago we had a series of "ice cream" soaps, which were pretty much the same thing, except in cuter packages that looked like pudding cups. Smelled better too.

This cleanser is trying too hard. It wants to appear new and special and different.

But ends up being quite meh.

Make-Remake Cloud All-In-One Cleanser 001 ingredient list:

Triticum Vulgare (Wheat) Sprout Extract, Glycerin, Sodium Lauroyl Glutamate, PEG/PPG/Polybutylene Glycol-8/5/3 Glycerin, Acrylates/C10-30 Alkyl Acrylate Crosspolymer, 1,2-Hexanediol, Butylene Glycol, Chenopodium Quinoa Seed Extract, Lens Esculenta (Lentil) Seed Extract, Secale Cereale (Rye) Seed Extract, Amaranthus Caudatus Seed Extract, Avena Sativa (Oat) Kernel Extract, Linum Usitatissimum (Linseed) Seed Oil, Silica, Xanthan Gum, Disodium Cocoamphodiacetate, Water, Alcohol Denat. , Trisodium EDTA, Fragrance

What else should I tell you?


If you want to get your own jar, or purchase any other Make-Remake product, you will have to use a Korean buying service (like, for example Korean Buddy - this is NOT an affiliate link, and no, I haven't used this service, yet).

You can find a full assortment of Make-Remake products on LG's own beautymall page - link.

Will I be buying more from this brand?

Nah... Based on this cleanser, I am not interested.

Hanyul White Chrysanthemum Radiance Serum

When I bought this Hanyul White Chrysanthemum Radiance Serum (I think it was on RoseRoseShop, but it might have been W2Beauty, I don't remember), I made a mistake.

You see, I used to use Hanyul White Chrysanthemum something or the other in the past, and it was lovely. But that was before I got all serious about blogging about Asian skincare products.
So earlier this year, when my dear friend from France asked about skin tone evening serums, I naturally ran to the net and purchased the first White Chrysanthemum item that caught my eye.

It turned out to be a good mistake, in several ways, actually.


But first things first.

"White chrysanthemum?" I hear you say.
"You mean, like this?" I hear you say.

image source: wikipedia

I mean, it's a chrysanthemum for sure. And it's definitely white.

Yeah, I thought so, too.
But as always with cosmetic products, the devil's in the details.

I remembered reading something about white chrysanthemum tea being a popular drink in China. But as far as I could recall, it didn't actually involve huge white flowers, of the kind usually placed on graves in a certain European country on November 1st.

I started digging. And sure enough, what they call "white chrysanthemum" in China is what we call "golden chamomile" or "Chinese chamomile" in Europe.

And yes, the "white chrysanthemum" drink I remembered drinking smelled more like chamomile tea than a cemetery on All Saints' Day (my Polish readers will understand the reference).

So you expect this:

image source: wikipedia


But in reality, you get this:

image source: wikipedia


Quite a difference, right?
Yeah, I thought so, too.

So that's the bad news. It's not white, it's golden, and it's not a chrysanthemum of the usual variety, but something more resembling a chamomile.

Luckily for us, that's the end of bad news.

And for the good news? Luckily for us, there's plenty of it.

1. Chamomile and chrysanthemums are actually related.
This one here is called Chrysanthellum indicum in Latin and "gamguk" in Korean. 

2. Chrysanthellum indicum extract happens to be quite awesome. According to multiple sources, it has:

• - anti-aging properties

• - anti-inflammatory properties

• - and according to a research paper published in the Journal of the European Academy of Dermatology and Venereology, is an effective and well-tolerated topical agent (used as 1% cream) for the treatment of moderate rosacea.

3. Hanyul White Chrysanthemum Radiance Serum claims to have 1000 ppm (part per million?) of this magical "gamguk" extract.

Wait a sec.
My Japanese friend has a question.

Hanyu???!!??

No, not Yuzuru Hanyu *). Though in all fairness, this boy is the fairest of them all and totally could have his own skincare line.

Hanyul.

image source: Amore Pacific

Hanyul is one of the many, many brands from Amore Pacific. And Amore Pacific is the largest beauty company in South Korea. Or one of the two largest. The other being LG (yep, that LG).
Hanyul's tagline is: "Traditional natural cosmetics from the nature and folk remedies of Korea."

Pity they limit themselves to Korea, because just imagine the perfect blend of Hanyu and Hanyul. The marketing possibilities are endless.
I'd buy it. Just because.

But what were we talking about here?

Ahhhh... yes... Hanyu Hanyul White Chrysanthemum Radiance Serum.

It's a Korean skincare product that claims to even out your complexion, reduce dark spots and blemishes, improve your skin's natural radiance by preventing the formation of melanin.
It also claims to have anti-wrinkle properties.

As a serum, it goes on your skin after cleansing and applying toner.


In a typical Hanyul fashion, one side of the box is printed in English, the other - in Korean.

The bottle has the characteristic Hanyul shape. But sadly, it's plastic. It looks like nice, luxurious glass, but it's just cheap plastic. Korean skincare companies like to fool you like that.

The bottle is semi-transparent (you can see how much stuff is still inside if you hold it against the light) and holds 40 ml of product.

The serum is white, its texture is very light and deliciously delicate. It's not oily, it's not watery, it's just right.

It does smell like chrysanthemums, though. It's not a strong smell, but it's there. And it definitely likes to linger. I absolutely hate this scent!!!

The serum absorbs completely, leaves the skin feeling soft and very lightly hydrated. There is no sticky film or other residue.

The bottle is equipped with a pump. But it's not the airless type, you can unscrew it and suck every last bit of what's still left in the bottle.

The leaflet included in the box has the usual useless information in two languages. However, the Korean version is more extensive and includes the ingredient list as well.

Basically, the only thing you can read in English is this:

So yeah. That's what they say.

What do I say about Hanyul White Chrysanthemum Radiance Serum?

This is a very confusing product.
I used it once a day, in the morning. I felt like it wasn't doing much, so I stopped and put it aside for a while.
My skin reacted immediately.
Sometimes the best way to determine whether a product works or not is to stop using it.

So yes, this serum is indeed doing something. I can't tell you what it's doing, but I can definitely tell you what happened when I wasn't using it.

My skin lost its radiance and returned to its usual pinkish and I-look-like-I'm-slightly-drunk ruddy state.
Not using it made me realize how gentle and delicate and subtle this serum is.
The changes are minimal but they are there.

And the best part?
There was no adverse reaction whatsoever.
My skin was calm, smooth, less pink, radiant, bright and healthy.

I'm so in love with this Hanyul White Chrysanthemum Radiance Serum that I nearly wept when I reached the bottom of the bottle.
I wanted to run and repurchase immediately.

But I didn't.

And I won't.

Why?

The smell. The flowery scent that makes me think of All Saints' Day. I just can't stomach another bottle of this sensory abomination.

99% of people will tell you it's a pleasant, refreshing fragrance. And they are right.
But if you are sensitive to scents, you will, literally, be able to taste it.



Hanyul White Chrysanthemum Radiance Serum ingredients (courtesy of HwaHae):

So there you have it.
A delightful brightening serum that is suitable for dry, sensitive and delicate skin, and which would be perfect, if not for the annoying fragrance.


If you want to try it, most Korean online stores carry it. Pricing varies, so it pays to shop around.

So that was Hanyul.

~~~

And this is Hanyu *)

*) Japanese Figure Skating God

Lalavesi Akma Cushion F.W. version in Y2

I didn't want to review this cushion. I have successfully avoided writing about it for nearly a year. I had no plans to write about this cushion.

Why?

Because people complain that there are too many negative reviews on my blog already.
I can understand that sentiment, but as I am not paid to write positive reviews, it is my right to be brutally honest.

Until  a product comes along that is loved by seemingly everybody and their dog. A product that I'm. Just. Not. Getting. At. All.

So yes, there wasn't going to be a review of Lalavesi Akma Cushion, version fall/winter in shade Y2.

And yet there is.
Why?

Because y'all wanted it!


Emails have been coming with increasing urgency from people who remembered my instagram photos from many months ago.
They knew I bought this cushion.
And I guess now, with another Lalavesi limited edition cushion case season upon us (at least I'm assuming there is another limited edition), the same people wanted to know what I thought of the product itself.

So, don't complain later on, because YOU asked for it!


As you can see, I bought the 2014 Ice Cute edition. That bitch just spoke to me.

Everybody was buying them Lalavesi cushions, and the good little lemming that I am, I wanted one too.
So I got me one.

I bought it from TwoFacedMall, and sadly, I can't recommend that seller to anyone.

It was my first and last order with them.

It took forever. For-freakin'-ever.

I don't remember how much it was. It wasn't exactly cheap, but also not earth-shatteringly expensive.

If this is the first time you are reading about cushion foundations, may I suggest you click on the "Cushion Foundation" tab in the top menu and work your way from there.

So, what's a cushion foundation anyway?

It's basically a chuck of sponge that is saturated with foundation and placed in a special compact.
Some brands will include an extra refill in the box. Lalavesi wasn't one of those brands.

The only things that were in the box were the compact and a leaflet (in Korean).

New Zealand honey, it said. Moisture and stuff, it said. I couldn't wait to try it.

But before I could try it, I had to first clean up the compact.
You see, the inner container, the one that holds the saturated-in-foundation sponge was so shoddily made that the contents leaked.
Yep, leaked. From a brand new, still sealed cushion.

And it just went downhill from there.

It leaked around the hinge part. I did try my best to wipe it off for the photos.

Them innernets were raving about this cushion, so my expectations were pretty high.

I tried it for the first time, and thought to myself "meh, this is IT?"
But them innernets were still raving, so I kept trying hoping for a miracle.

Until the bitch broke me out.

But let's begin at the beginning:

• - moisturizing? Nope. Not for my dry skin. It was a horrid, nearly cakey, dry mess. 
• - coverage? Minimal. 
• - wear? Awful!!! This shit got into every wrinkle and fine line, even in those I didn't know I had. It accentuated every dry patch.
• - dewy glow? Surely, you must be joking! It tended to turn into something resembling powdery finish, reminded me of Kate Powderless Liquid For Cover.
• - lasting power? A couple of hours, and I am being very generous here.
• - oxidizing? Mercifully, no.
• - scent? Yes, a generic cosmetic smell.

I honestly thought this was the worst cushion in my quite extensive cushion collection.

I was so frustrated with it that I put it away for a few months.
Usually when I do that, the break from a product helps me see it in a different light later on.

Not in this case...
Around May the darling of the Korean beauty blogging world, Tracy from fanserviced-b.com, reviewed this cushion and sang its praises.

I thought that perhaps I was doing something wrong the first time around.
And so full of fresh anticipation I dug out my Lalavesi Akma Cushion F.W and started to play with it again.

And the history repeated itself - every pore made bigger, every wrinkle made more visible and every dry patch - even drier.

Oh for craps' sakes!
I honestly lost all patience with this useless piece of kaka.
This is probably the worst cushion ever. Ever!

Dunno, maybe it works on people with normal to oily skin. It didn't work on mine.
Life is too short to fight with crappy cushion foundations.



Lalavesi Akma Cushion F.W in shade Y2. - ingredients (courtesy of Agathblog):

Honey Extract, Titanium Dioxide, Phenyl Trimethicone, Ethylhexyl Methoxycinnamate, Cyclopentasiloxane, Glycerin, Butylene Glycol Dicaprylate/Dicaprate, Lauryl PEG-9 Polydimethylsiloxyethyl Dimethicone, 4-Methylbenzylidene Camphor, Cyclohexasiloxane, Arbutin, Dimethicone, Benzophenone-3, Polyglyceryl-3 Polyricinoleate, Methylene Bis-Benzotriazolyl Tetramethylbutylphenol, Sodium Chloride, Octyldodecanol, Echium Plantagineum Seed Oil, Helianthus Annuus (Sunflower) Seed Oil Unsaponifiables, Cardiospermum Halicacabum Flower/Leaf/Vine Extract, Portulaca Oleracea Extract, Citrus Aurantium Bergamia (Bergamot) Fruit Oil, CI 77492, CI 77499, CI 77491, 1,2-Hexanediol, Butylene Glycol, Acrylates/Ethylhexyl Acrylate/Dimethicone Methacrylate Copolymer, Dimethicone/PEG-10/15 Crosspolymer, Disteardimonium Hectorite, Caprylhydroxamic Acid, Adenosine, Fragrance

Lalavesi Akma Cushion F.W in color Y2 - swatches:

And that's it.

Final thoughts:

• - It seems to be a cushion (an entire brand, actually) targeting a young and pretty demographic. Young women with oilier skin, who want sheer coverage and are willing to pay for "trendy" stuff. I'm neither.
• - Will I repurchase? LOL. You gotta be kidding me! Of course not.

DHC Kakonjuka Lotion, Essence and Cream

Life happens.
Bad, bad blogger!
And that's all you're going to get in lieu of apologies for my prolonged silence.

Today's review is long overdue.
Looong overdue.
Why? I always have a hard time writing exciting things about solid products. You know what products I'm talking about. Those... you know... solid... always dependable... boring... dependable... in simple packages... not earth shattering holy grails, but just... you know... good... dependable.

DHC is such a brand for me. Solid. Dependable. Boring. Doing what it's been designed to do. But utterly unexciting.
If I can't decide what to use, I reach for DHC. I know it's not going to hurt me. I know I can't go wrong with it. I know I can... you know... depend on it.
DHC is like a pair of my favorite shoes. Comfortable, well worn, on my feet day in and day out. Yeah, I have pairs of sexy heels, and fancy sneakers, and classic pumps, but it's the trusted, boring pair of Vans that I end up wearing every day.

So when one day earlier this year I found myself in need of some emergency skincare, DHC was the default brand I went out to buy. It helped that there was a DHC sale going on, too, and I could get every product for more than 50% off. And as we all very well know, cheap is always good. And cheaper is even better.

DHC is a pretty basic brand in Japan. It's available at most drugstores, supermarkets and even some convenience stores, however, the selection of products in stock in those locations tends to be limited. For the full DHC assortment you need to visit its own brand stores, easily found in most shopping malls, or order through the company's website or direct mailing.

If you want to know a bit more about the company, here's a handy link to the "About DHC page" on their international website.

DHC Deep Cleansing Oil is well known and loved by beauty fans (even those unfamiliar with other Asian beauty products) all over the world. It helps that Lisa Eldridge sings its praises, too.
It's also one of my cleansing staples. I like trying new oils, but always find myself coming back to DHC. So yes, maybe it is my holy grail after all.

DHC in the West is considered to be a mid- to higher-level brand apparently. At least it seems so judging by the ridiculous prices. When I saw the products markups on the international website, I nearly wept. Holymotherofbatman! Speechless!
But as soon as I stopped weeping, I noticed that those DHC products that are no longer available in stores in Japan (for whatever reason), are still sold overseas.

Today's trio belongs to this category. I snagged it on sale, because, seemingly, it was being phased out of in-store assortment in Japan. I haven't seen it listed in the DHC direct mailing catalog either.
You can, however, still order it on the Japanese DHC website. The question is whether or not you'd want to, if you had to pay full price for it?

So, let's try to answer it. Shall we?


And with that in mind, I'd like to introduce today's contestants:

DHC Kakonjuka (or Kakon Juka) line.

Yes, as you've probably noticed, I have this unhealthy habit of buying not just one product from a particular line, but the whole damn thing. All the bits, whether I need them or not.
On one hand it's very convenient, because I can see whether the products work separately, or together, and can determine the best combination for the best results. If there are any results, that is.
On the other hand, good grief! I have too much stuff already! I don't need more skincare products!

Still,  I hate piddling piecemeal, and because they were all on sale, I just got the entire DHC Kakonjuka line:

• - DHC Kakonjuka Lotion (80ml)
• - DHC Kakonjuka Essence (25ml)

and

• - DHC Kakonjuka Cream (30grams).

What the eff is this Kakonjuka anyway, I hear you say.

It's pronounced ka-kon-ju-ka, and means “flower, root, tree, fruit” in Japanese (花根樹果).

With a name like that you'd expect it to be full of extracts and good-for-you natural stuff? Right?
Some bloggers, like Musings of a Muse, fell for this trick and said that Kakonjuka is "all natural skincare".
Of course that's a crock of kaka, as we will shortly see.

Kakonjuka is "all natural" in about the same way that I am an innocent, blushing virgin.

Having said that, it's not a bad line. But is it as great at DHC would like us to believe? Heck no.


Let's start with the DHC Kakonjuka Lotion - 80ml.

Some bloggers were confused why it's called a "lotion".
So here you have it - it's called a "lotion", because that's what we call toners in Japan. It's not a lotion in the western sense. It's a toner. And as most toners, it goes on your face after cleansing to prep the skin for the rest of your skincare products.

Kakonjuka Lotion is supposed to plump and hydrate your face. DHC says that it contains six Asian botanicals to "prepare your complexion for your moisturizer and promote collagen for firmer skin and fewer visible fine lines."
Those botanicals are: maitake mushroom, Platycarya strobilacea, great burnet, purslane, reishi mushroom and licorice.

The lotion has a pretty thick texture. DHC calls it "rich" and "serum-like."  It absorbs completely and doesn't leave a sticky layer. It has a vague earthy smell and is alcohol-free. So that's the good stuff.

Now for the bad. The botanicals are at the very end of the ingredient list, which means they do diddly squat. I guess the only reason they are there, so the company could say they are there.

DHC Kakonjuka Lotion ingredients:

water/aqua/eau, dipropylene glycol, glycerin, propanediol, pentylene glycol, butylene glycol, phenoxyethanol, glycosyl trehalose, acrylates/C10-30 alkyl acrylate crosspolymer, hydrogenated starch hydrolysate, arginine, grifola frondosa fruiting body extract, maltodextrin, xanthan gum, aureobasidium pullulans ferment, hydrolyzed platycarya strobilacea fruit extract, hydroxypropyl cyclodextrin, polyquaternium-51, glycyrrhiza glabra (licorice) leaf extract, sodium hyaluronate, ziyu glycoside I, portulaca oleracea extract, olea europaea (olive) leaf extract, ganoderma lucidum (mushroom) stem extract, ethylhexylglycerin

My opinion:

I noticed decent hydration and zero plumping. Firmer skin and fewer lines? Hahaha!!! Surely you didn't take that product blurb seriously.

So, does it do anything? Yes, it does. It's a very basic, alcohol-free toner that does what a basic toner is supposed to. It's perfectly serviceable, it doesn't make my face erupt in angry cysts, and its fragrance doesn't make my eyes water. In fact, the earthy smell is kind of refreshing.

But if you're expecting fewer wrinkles and other bells and whistles, you are looking at the wrong product.

~~~

Next up we have: DHC Kakonjuka Essence - 25ml.

We have the same six botanicals at the very end of the ingredient list. And we have the same lofty promises of firmer skin. Hahaha!
I'm not going to give you a detailed summary of what each extract is supposed to be doing, because trust me, there isn't enough of any of them to do anything. Except, just like in the case of the lotion described above, justify the product's cute name.

The bottle is tiny, it holds only 25ml of product. But at least it has a pump.

The essence is off white in color, has the same earthy smell and is alcohol-free. It provided my skin with just enough hydration to stay sane during the ridiculously hot and humid Japanese summers.

It didn't break me out, it absorbed completely. It worked with the cream from the same line, as well as with a different set of products. In short, nothing to complain about.

DHC Kakonjuka Essence ingredients:

water/aqua/eau, dipropylene glycol, glycerin, olea europaea (olive) fruit oil, propanediol, ethylhexyl palmitate, pentylene glycol, dimethicone, glycosyl trehalose, glyceryl stearate, limnanthes alba (meadowfoam) seed oil, hydrogenated starch hydrolysate, butylene glycol, bisabolol, behenyl alcohol, polysorbate 80, PEG-75 stearate, phenoxyethanol, carbomer, arginine, grifola frondosa fruiting body extract, maltodextrin, hydrolyzed platycarya strobilacea fruit extract, hydroxypropyl cyclodextrin, tocopherol, polyquaternium-51, citrus grandis (grapefruit) seed extract, glyccyrrhiza glabra (licorice) leaf extract, ziyu glycoside I, portulaca olearacea extract, olea europaea (olive) leaf extract, ganoderma lucidum (mushroom) stem extract

My opinion:

DHC Kakonjuka Essence is a basic, no-frills essence that gives basic, no-frills moisture. Any additional benefits are, more likely than not, purely a placebo effect.


~~~

And finally we have: DHC Kakonjuka Cream - 30 grams.

DHC Kakonjuka Cream intensive face moisturizer "features six nourishing, antioxidant-rich botanicals—used for centuries in Asia—to plump and hydrate your complexion. Promotes collagen for firmer skin and fewer visible fine lines and wrinkles." That's what DHC says.

The cream is again off white and has a "natural" smell. Again, the six trace elements extracts are all present, but highly doubtful they provide any noticeable benefits.

It turned out to be a perfect day cream. It moisturized just enough, it absorbed completely, it left the skin feeling soft and smooth.

It worked great under makeup, it didn't break me out and I didn't notice any adverse reactions.

DHC Kakonjuka Cream ingredients:

water/aqua/eau, dimethicone, ethylhexyl palmitate, propanediol, behenyl alcohol, beeswax, olea europaea (olive) fruit oil, glycerin, cylcopentasiloxane, glyceryl stearate, pentylene glycol, limnanthes alba (meadowfoam) seed oil, octyldodecyl myristate, PEG-75 stearate, polysorbate 60, butylene glycol, bisabolol, glycosyl trehalose, phenoxyethanol, hydrogenated starch hydrolysate, grifola frondosa fruiting body extract, maltodextrin, hydrolyzed platycarya strobilacea fruit extract, hydroxypropyl cyclodextrin, tocopherol, polyquaternium-51, arginine, sodium hyaluronate, citrus grandis (grapefruit) seed extract, glycyrrhiza glabra (licorice) leaf extract, ziyu glycoside I, portulaca oleracea extract, olea europaea (olive) leaf extract, ganoderma lucidum (mushroom) stem extract

My opinion:

DHC Kakonjuka Cream, like the rest of this line, is a decent, basic cream that serves a decent, basic purpose.

I wanted to test the moisturizing claims, and I must say, I was pleasantly surprised.
Here you have the before and after results when using the entire set:

Not too shabby, I'd say.

And if you are interested, here's this test:

Final thoughts on DHC Kakonjuka line:


The Kakonjuka line has turned out to be exactly what DHC is famous for - a solid set of skincare products that are low key, efficient, no frills, and doing, at least partially, what they're supposed to in that unassuming DHC way.

But the packaging... Oh gods, the packaging is awful. Just awful. Looks cheap and trashy.

For all three products I paid the equivalent of US$25.00. There were cheap.
Will I repurchase?
If I have to pay the full price - no.