First venure into Tony Moly (sneak peak)

I've been hauling a big amount of Tony Moly (a Korean brand) stuff last week after finding out about this brand and finally today I got my parcel.


My first impression is very positive. The packaging is super cute (some items even have a vintage feel) and the quality seems to be quite good.

I am not going to pack all the items in 1 review as I just got too much so my "First Venture" post will just include a pic of the complete haul and individual reviews will follow.

Here is a pic of all the freebies included (not showing the free lipglosses that were included in the skincare kits

Inexpensive Beauty Find: VOV Castledew Watershot Foundation

I am a devoted user of BB Creams now so I rarely use actual foundations. Of course that couldn't stop me from ordering a bottle of Castledew's Watershot Foundation. The main selling point was the color #19 which promised to be very pale so the chance it would be suiting me was very high (most Korean foundations come in #21 and 23 only, sometimes #21 fits me, sometimes not, depending on the brand.. anything lighter than #21 usually works for me).


The Watershot Foundation comes in a very pretty heavy glass bottle with a pump dispenser. For the fact that it only costs somewhere around 7000-8000 Won (US$7) for a 45ml bottle it looks quite well-made and elegant.


The foundation rocks. It really is fabulous! The color match #19 is near perfect, it's a very pale slightly yellow-toned foundation and spreads into a very pretty slightly glowy finish. It gives sheer-medium coverage which is the level of pigment I usually go for as my skin generally is quite even.
I think it's moisturizing and feels very comfy to wear. I am not sure how oily skins would react to this but for my normal-dry skin it's perfect.


The foundation spread on my hand:


The best is that the foundation looks very natural on me. It doesn't get cakey or mask-like and lasts most of the day on me (I always follow with a bit of concealer and powder and prep with base and/or a light layer of BB Cream).

The foundation carries a light powdery scent which is quite pleasant in my opinion.
All in all for about US$7 it couldn't be better! I am someone who is not shy to spend a lot of money on a good foundation but this US$7 one is really good =D
Castledew has convinced me once again that good makeup doesn't need to be super expensive!

Small Jadilla J haul

vMy friend Betsy emailed me a couple of weeks back sending me the link to a Jadilla J kit on Gmarket for only 27200 Won for 3 full-sized products I just couldn't pass up =)


I purchased my Jadilla J items only from seller vovcare so far as it was the only seller I was able to locate and the prices were higher but therefore everything came with truckloads of free stuff so they were good deals nonetheless. Right now there is a sale going on so you get all the Jadilla J stuff either 50% off or 1+1 free (like the mascara and liner for the price of 1 item only) so you can score pretty nice deals from vovcare (therefore no or very little amount of freebies included)


Anyways, the kit comes with your choice of Whitening BB Plus (2 colors), Light On Pact (3 color choices) and a Lipgloss (7 colors to choose from).
I got a backup of the Whitening BB Plus in #1 (Light), the Light On Pact in Light++ and the Lipgloss in #6.


The Light On Pact in Light++ works suprisingly well with my skin-tone. I have several sample sized versions of this and I swear they look more yellow than the full-size. So now I have 2 Light On Pacts both suitable for my skin-tone (the other one is the light purple one in this post where you can also read about the BB Cream).


The Lipgloss is very pretty! It's a medium plummy pink with fine glitters. The color is sheer-medium pigmented and shows up as a pretty cool pink with a very glossy finish. Really lovely! You can read more about texture/scent here where I reviewed the other Lipgloss I purchased recently.


This kit is a very nice way to try 3 items from Jadilla J for a good price. The item# is 152714696 on Gmarket.

First venture into Enprani

I see Enprani stuff offered all over Gmarket but for some reason the makeup didn't appeal so much to me so I skipped it. It's not cute or princessy or something... the stuff looks a bit aged and simple.
Anyways, I decided to order an eyeshadow palette as it looked like a pretty color combo and affordable at around 16000 Won so why not give it a shot?


I have to say the Color-Full Eye Shadow palette is meh. The case is simple and reminds me of a small notebook or something (due to the rounded back).
There are 3 powder shadows and a cream liner in the quad. The 3 powders are rather sheer and not really buildable (when I try to layer I basically wipe off the shadow I applied). They have a velvety finish (not shimmery and not metallic, somewhere in between).


In honor of the palette I have to say the colors work together nicely but they're just too sheer for my taste. Also they don't last well. My eye makeup was mostly gone after 4 or 5 hours.
The cream liner is quite good though. It has a gleaming finish and stayed on through most of the day.
The palette I got (#213) seems to be the newest in the line-up.
The colors are a pale gold, pale peachy pink, warm heather and a glistening plum liner.


It's not a bad palette just the staying power and color pay-off leave a lot to be desired.
I think Enprani eyeshadows are not for me but I will try some face makeup soon.

The eyeshadow came with free oil blotting papers. I purchased from seller miincos on Gmarket.

Cathy Cat Apple skincare

Even though I am VERY pleased with my Banila Co, Skin Food and Etude House skincare (I mainly use Banila right now... check my review here) I had no chance resisting buying a few items from Cathy Cat as they looked very pretty on the pics online.


I decided to order the Apple Fresh Light Skin Softener (basically a toner), their Apple Eye Ring Pleasure Eye Serum and their Apple Aqua Fresh Facial Cream.

-Apple Fresh Light Skin Softener 150ml:


This comes in a super pretty iridescent pink heavy glass bottle. It looks like white glass with fine pink shimmers under bright lights.
The skin softener is a basic liquid toner that feels refreshing when I use it. It also takes care of the last mini rests of makeup I might still have on after using cleansing oil and and a foaming cleanser.
I paid somewhere around 14000 Won

-Apple Eye Ring Pleasure Eye Serum 30ml:


This is a lightweight but nonetheless moisturizing eye fluid. It makes a great base under eye makeup as it's light and not greasy.
The cute iridescent pink/white glass bottle contains a generous 30ml which is about double the amount of most other eye creams.
I think I paid around 15000 Won

-Apple Aqua Fresh Facial Cream 50ml:


I think this is the star in the series. It's a very huge bulky glass pot with a white cover flashing pink forming an apple shape.
The cream is actually a gel cream so it's lightweight and sinks into my skin quickly but gives a good deal of moisture to it. My skin feels super soft when I use this so I just want to touch it all the time =)


The coolest thing is the included spatula. I love spatulas but hate how I lose them all the time in my bathroom. Cathy Cat solved that problem and made one side magnetic. You can just attach it to the center of the pot and it will adhere making it look like an apple leaf. So cute! It's a good strong magnet so the spatula really stays in place. How nifty is that? Gotta love the Koreans for their inventive ideas!


The pot set me back 20200 Won (less than US$20 at current exchange rate)

All items carry a soft scent. I hoped it would be a crisp apple scent but indeed everything smells like a soft version of D&G Light Blue. A nice perfume but it's the only small rant I have as I prefer unscented or lightly scented face care instead.


I ordered everything from the same seller that sells Banila Co (check my Gmarket sellers list). While the seller was really generous with samples the small pet peeve I have is that he packed EVERY SINGLE ITEM in an extra box. I got a super huge but very lightweight EMS last week and wondered why it was so huge.. so when I opened I found every item in a box (even the Banila Co Eyeliners etc. were all packed separately)... my EMS box was full of 11 (or so) other small boxes. Crazy!

Lioele Water Drop BB kit

I haven't paid much attention to Lioele lately as there didn't seem to be anything really new or interesting out and also they decided not to ship internationally via Gmarket anymore.
They changed their mind and ship worldwide now (with the exception of Japan, Singapore and Malaysia I believe) so I stumbled across their new Water Drop BB Lioele Aqua Makeup packed together with some other nice things for 29000 Won so I decided to give the set a shot.

-Water Drop BB Lioele Aqua Makeup SPF27 PA++:


This comes in a pretty light blue squeeze tube which is very different from their usual pink packaging.
It's one of those super light BB Creams that sink into the skin right away leaving it moisturized but without the balmy feeling other BB Creams have.
The coverage of this is VERY sheer so it doesn't even out my skin much. My main problem is the color though. Even though it's very sheer it still shows up quite yellow and too dark for me so unfortunately this BB Cream is not suitable for my skin tone. I suspected this when I ordered it as the other BB Cream (Beyond The Solution BB Cream) was too yellow and a tad too dark, too, but on the swatch it looked more neutral so I decided to give it a try. I think this would be a very good choice for someone with oilier, warmer toned skin who doesn't need a lot of coverage.
A swatch will be posted in my next BB Cream comparison post.

-Blooming Cushion Touch Blusher:


Those blushers with the loose powder filled into a container with a sponge seem to be the hit all over the world now. Japanese brands make them (e.g. Coffret D'or, Aube), Korean brands have them (Banila Co, Lioele and some others) and even the local brands here like S-He Stylezone and Essence sell them. I don't know why they're popular as all of them just suck in my opinion. I have to pat them on the back on my hand to get the powder to the surface and then slap that thing into my face very hard to get any color showing up. I personally believe my cheeks just turn reddish because of the hard pressure =P
The Lioele is no way better. The color I got (#1) is a very chalky pale pink but it doesn't show up no matter how hard I try. I could just screw the sponge off and dip a brush into the powder but I am honestly too lazy. I am not a fan of loose blushers/powders/eyeshadows of any sort!


This is also available in an orange color (#2)
Sorry, Lioele, this gets a nay from me.

-Blooming Gloss:


This is a pretty nice slick gloss with decent lastability and a soft glossy finish. It has a pleasant fruity scent and just a bit of fine shimmer.
All in all a good and comfortable to wear gloss in a pretty soft sheer warm pink color (I picked #2 out of the 3 available choices).

The kit also comes with a Lioele Perfect Essence Mask Set (5 free different sheet masks) and retails for 29000 Won. A shame that 2 of the items don't really work for me... I see it more as a waste of money =(
I also ordered another bigger kit which I'll review later.


With the purchse of 3 or more products there are bonus gifts available. Since both kits I ordered contained a total of 9 items I qualified for the best GWP (buy 7+ items): a pretty and very useful makeup pouch (which I really love now) and a package of wet makeup remover wipes. I also got a deluxe sample sized tube of their Beyond The Solution BB Cream and plenty of sample sachets packed along with a coupon to use for my next order (though it probably will be useless for me as I can't order from their website and I doubt they take coupons in their Gmarket store)....

Rita Rove W So Lightsome haul =)

I've been lemming this Rita Rove W kit for a month or so now and while I ordered several times from Gmarket I just never purchased this (don't ask me why!).


But finally the kit made it to me and I have to say I am very pleased with the items.
Supposedly you pay for the 2 powders compacts (448000 Won) and get a full-sized BB Cream and Concealer with the purchase plus the seller (miae90322) adds 4 other toiletries as gifts. I calculate that I paid about US$9/each item (excluding the 4 other GWPs) so it's a really good deal.

-W So Lightsome Powder Pact SPF20 (For all skin types, 20g):


This comes in the beautiful purple crystal compact similar to their blusher compact. It comes with a powder puff and a mirror.
The texture of the powder is very silky and fine and it feels very lightweight and pleasant. It offers about medium coverage and an even non-cakey finish. I can't detect a strong scent which is pleasant (no headaches like with Cathy Cat's powders!).


I think the powders stays on very well through most of the day (though now the weather is really cool so I can't say how well it will survive through humid/hot days).


The color I picked (#21) is a very light very slightly yellow-toned powder that works perfectly with my skin-tone.
I am very pleased with the Powder Pact and can really recommend it.

-W Shine Powder Pact (For all skin types, 21g):


This comes in the identical compact to the other powder.
The texture is similar, the only difference seems to be the addition of lots of finely milled glitter. I personally prefer glowy powders (like the baked ones) because the glitters in the W Shine Powder are a bit bigger and give more of a shimmery than a glowy finish.
I think the Shine Powder looks very pretty on a darker winter day but in bright sunlight the glitter is a bit too obvious for my taste.


I chose color #21 which is a great match for my skin. It seems to be a tad more yellow and a tiny bit darker than the regular powder pact.

-W So Lightsome BB Cream (for all skin types, 50ml):


So this supposedly comes free with the powders in the full-size tube. The tube is a pretty simple light matte purple squeeze-tube with a white cover.
The W So Lightsome BB Cream has the typical slightly thick texture and very pale slightly grayish pink-undertoned beige color that works so well with my complexion. The coverage it offers is sheer-medium and there is no real perfume I can detect (which is unusual as most BB Creams are scented).
All in all this is a good BB Cream and well worth earning a place in my collection =) (I will post a swatch of this and a bunch of other new BB Creams in my next "BB Creams: Quick Comparison V")

-W So Lightsome Concealer:


The W So Lightsome Concealer is the other freebie and is housed in a purple swivel-out tube. It's one of those quite hard dry concealers that adhere extremely well to pimples or other kinds of small spots. It's not suitable really for under-eye circles or to cover bigger red areas due to the hard a bit difficult to spread formula.
The color it comes in (only 1 shade available) works perfectly with my natural skin tone and this concealer is really great to cover the occasional blemish I get on my chin.


All in all I am very happy with the lot and the items are of really great quality.

The other 4 freebies that came with the kit are a small pamphlet containing sample sachets of Rita Rove W So Lightsome makeup base and foundation (the lightest foundation is way too yellow and dark for me btw but the green makeup base seems to be quite nice), a pack of Purederm Makeup Remover Wipes, a package of cotton pads and a Purederm Korean Herb sheet mask (this one is quite good).