Kanebo Impress Color Powder N in 01 PK

Today I am going to review the one and only product I own from the VERY expensive Kanebo Impress range.
I wouldn´t have bought the Color Powder N for its full price anyway which sums up to a total of 8000 Yen (+tax...around US$98) for the case and refill. But on ebay I scored it for less than half that price...still hefty but along the lines of "normal" Japanese brands and I remember I read somewhere about the excellent quality of the Impress face makeup items.

The case is sturdy, elegant and simple but after all..made of plastic! Considering that one has to pay over US$30 for the case alone one should be able to expect something more elaborate.

There is a very wide super soft brush included which actually can do a wonderful job dusting a sheer layer of this product over the face.
The refill is a metal pan and is fixed with the soft glue attached to the back of it.

This is a finishing powder..so it should be used on top of any kind of foundation AND powder or powder foundation...so like the Météorites as the very last step of the makeup process.

I chose the color 01 PK which consists of a very sheer pale pinkish flesh and a light beige color. The powder is very finely milled and feels silky and smooth. It has the most gorgeous light sheen but there is no actual color, glitter or even shimmer showing up...just a beautiful soft glow. Really gorgeous and I really love this powder as the last step of my makeup routine!

Even though this product is expensive it´s a wonderful finishing powder and I am happy I found an opportunity to try this out.
There are also a yellow and a purplish color available.


Rating 5/5

Small Japankawaiiya haul incl. a really cool Q-Lia stamp set =)

Sorry for yet another stationery post lol... don´t worry, beauty posts will follow soon but right now I don´t have much new stuff to review. 

Anyway, I hauled a few goodies from Japankawaiiya, this time from her Etsy store as she doesn´t have the cool stickers and stamps in her webshop.

I got cute capsule stickers from San-X Kutusita Nyanko and Rilakkuma as I really love these kind of stickers and I thought both were really super cute. Actually I usually don´t know what to use them for ecxcept for gift wrapping or putting on my iphone or other gadgets lol... anyway, my kids usually have some good use for these, too, so I will share them =X

I also got a roll of sticky tape (forgot to take a pic of it =X) and 2 paper punches (they were on sale).

The coolest thing is this stamp set from Q-Lia though! You get a clear acrylic block and can attach whichever combo of stamps you want. The stamps are made of silicone which sticks to the block without any glue and can easily be removed. Just assemble your desired design, stamp, wash off and put the stamps back on the clear plasic sheet.

The set also includes a blue pigment ink stamp pad for a clear and even result.
This is really a nice set, my kids are playing with it now all the time haha

 
Here´s an example:

Yozocraft stationery haul, my primped iPad and my new Instax Mini 7s =)

Yozocraft.com has become one of my favorite sellers as of lately... the variety of super sweet, often vintage-style stationery is just too cute to resist and the prices are really good! Most products are either from Korea or China (but good-quality things!) and a few are from Japan. 
Korean stationery tends to be quite different from Japanese...less kawaii stuff and bright colors going on, but rather a "European" or "vintage chic" theme... I personally like both styles but as I said...overall a bit different.
As I mentioned above the prices are really good, the Korean stuff tends to be around or slightly above retail price...e.g. I got this really cool 24-sheet sticker set which retails for 8800 Won (a bit over US$8) and I paid US$10...not a bad increase and it´s much cheaper (shipping-wise) to pick up the stickers from Yozocraft rather than Gmarket...
As you see I got plenty of stickers, note books, memo pads, card cases... 

And here is my primped iPad... I only used stickers from the 24-sheet set. The stickers are not precut so it´s perfect to do any sort of creative art (scrapbooking etc.) with them... I like how it came out!
The reflection on the screen comes from a clear plastic cover protecting the layer of stickers.

Last week I got an order from Gmarket containing my new Fujifilm Instax Mini 7s, a magnifying lens, some films and a case for it. I also got free battery covers in 4 colors.
The quality of the pics is alright, not the best for sure but that´s the thing about Polaroids. Also the films are pricey but overall it´s a nice little toy to have around =P

 
Oh and since I spoke about Japanese stationery... this is a recent haul from glenns2634 on eBay...those matcha latte KitKats were seriously delicious!

Miracosmetics Imselene Olive Natural & Organic Olive Premium Body Essence Lotion

I neither ever heard of the brand Imselene by a unknown company (Miracosmetics) nor would I even know how to search for it on Gmarket but I stumbled across their Natural & Organic Olive Premium Body Essence Lotion (what a name!) and thought the 510g bottle looked nice so I added it to a recent order (Gmarket 200768421, option #5...you have to choose 2 lotions for the price so this product cost me around US$4 or so. I also got option #9 which is also a really nice lotion btw).
I think I just liked the look of this and the promise of "Natural & Organic" is always cool though I have no idea how natural this lotion really is.
 
I really like the huge 510g bottle with its very big pump dispenser as it´s very comfy to push so my hand doesn´t slip off and the long neck makes it convenient to put the hand under the pump to receive the lotion.

This Olive Premium Body Essence Lotion is a rich and very nurturing cream with a very nice green and fresh fragrance. It needs some time (3-5 mins) to sink into my skin properly but my skin will stay soft until the next day... the one I chose is the richer version, I believe you can also get a lighter one (option #6).

Actually I really love this lotion, it smells so good (and the scent lingers for really long!) and makes my skin so silky soft and smooth. Perfect for dry-very dry skin and the colder winter weather, it might be too heavy for summer though (but since our summer only lasts like 2-3 months that´s fine with me) =D


Rating 5/5

Somang Redflo Camellia Hair Shampoo, Conditioner & Treatment

I wanted to try the Redflo haircare from Somang since last summer when I discovered the products in an Egyptian Seif Pharmacy store (a chain of nicely modern and clean drugstores)... but for around US$25/bottle that was a bit too expensive for my taste though I would shell out that much money if I knew it´s a great haircare and I am out of other Asian products when I am in Egypt...it´s always good to have options!
 
The products looked so much like a Shiseido Tsubaki knock-off and the generous bottles (750ml for shampoo or conditioner and 500ml for the treatment) were really seductive to pick up back in summer...
Anyway, I was sure I could get the Redflo products for a fraction of the price on Gmarket....I know that Somang is not an expensive brand overall.
I did my search but didn´t find anything on Gmarket and then somehow forgot about that brand...
Anyway, recently I remembered it and I was searching on Google and found the Somang website where all the product names were printed in Korean so I could do my search with that and found lots of results on Gmarket! Most sellers (and those with the best offers) unfortunately didn´t send overseas but after some searching I found just what I wanted and the price was right, too (around US$7/each product) so I ordered a bottle each of the Hair Shampoo, Hair Conditioner and Hair Treatment.

Of course shipping turned out a bit more due to the weight but I ordered more things so the total costs per product came to maybe around US$12-13. Still ok, retail price in the US is US$20/each.

This haircare series smells really good, the typical floral camellia scent, similar to the famous red Tsubaki line but a bit more soapy. All products contain camellia water and camellia oil.

I actually expected to be disappointed by this haircare as after all it seemed quite cheap for the size so i didn´t have high hopes regarding the quality and being spoiled with excellent Japanese hair care.
I´d say that the Redflo haircare is pretty alright. When using all 3 products together my hair gets silky, fragrant and soft with a beautiful glossy shine however the whole series isn´t rich enough for my dyed hair. I´d say the products are good for dry hair but not for very damaged or color-treated/permed hair.



Overall a good haircare and well worth purchasing if you can get the products at a good price.


Rating 3.5/5

50% off sale on Japankawaiiya

If you are searching for cute Japanese stationery goods then I recommend checking out Japankawaiiya.com as everything in the store has been marked down by 50%. I hauled quite a bunch of cute goodies already =)
Just thought to share this....

Fits Japan Pink Brown Mascara

Pink Brown Mascara from Fits Japan? Nothing I urgently needed but as I am curious, a sucker for cutely packed stuff and a beauty blogger I had enough excuses to indulge in a tube of it =D
I definitely liked the look of the mascara...and the promise of "sweet girly eyes" =)

As expected the tube is really sweet... and the mascara is pretty much your average brown mascara!
The applicator is a regular coil-shaped brush type and the formula contains lots of fibers so it´s a lengthening rather than a volume formula.
 
As I mentioned above after all this is just a brown mascara, a reddish one perhaps, but a brown mascara. I personally always think that brown mascaras don´t give enough definition but they are nice for a natural understated look.
I like it more layered on top of a black mascara as it softens the black but there is a little more drama compared to wearing it solo.

The result of this mascara is a soft feathery look, there is no drama at all but it keeps the curl at least somewhat well. 
I think this would also double well as an eyebrow mascara!

This mascara is not waterproof I believe as it comes off completely with just using cleansing oil and none of the waterproof Japanese mascaras I tried can be removed with cleansing oil alone usually. 
The fibers irritate my eyes slightly during application if I am not careful but there is no problem for me with fibers falling on my cheeks after the mascara dries.

Overall a product I can live without but it´s cute and nice to have around for super natural eyes (any maybe more defined/brighter/deeper lips?).
Retails for 1575 Yen, I got mine from Alphabeautyuk on eBay. 


Mascara alone

On top of Kiss Me Heroine Make Curl & Long

Rating 3.5/5