Sephora Haul

I haven't shopped at Sephora in store or online since December of last year and I fully intend to make up for that as we get closer to the end of the year when there are more sales and promotions. Tomorrow is the last day of Sephora's Beauty Insider Appreciation Week where Beauty Insiders, VIB, and VIB Rouge earn extra points on all purchases. I only picked up a few things because I'm waiting for the VIB discount that happens around November. I'd rather save some money than earn points (I've been hoarding 1500 points since last year) although the new Rewards Bazaar that happens every Tuesday and Thursday does look tempting. Anyway, here's a quick look at what I purchased.

Drugstore Haul

Can you believe it's been SIX MONTHS since I bought any sort of beauty related item??? That includes personal care items like body wash, hair care, and body lotion. It also goes to show you how much I tend to stock up on products. When you have twins on the way and live in a two bedroom apartment where a grand piano takes up more than half of the second bedroom, reality starts to kick in and you realize buying more products would not help the lack of space situation. Anyway, I happened to walk into Harmon's on my way to Trader Joe's and I couldn't resist picking up a few things.

Jolse Haul

My new favorite site is Jolse and I have no idea why I resisted ordering from there before. The biggest appeal about the company is that they offer free worldwide shipping. And they often run promotions with discounts on various brands and free EMS shipping if you spend a certain amount of money. In general, their prices are slightly higher than Tester Korea but the free shipping makes up for it in my mind. When you first sign up on the site, you will automatically get $3 in credit which you can use towards your first order. You will also get 3% store credit on every order. As of now, they sell 50 brands on the site along with a few other miscellaneous brands.

I made two orders with Jolse over a period of two weeks. I should have just combined everything together to get better perks but I was trying to restrain myself. Spending over $20 will get you a free charcoal nose strip, over $50 a sheet mask, over $70 a shower glove, over $100 a hair string and socks, and over $150 will get you a hand cream and free EMS shipping. They are also very generous with samples which I always appreciate. The first order arrived quickly, within 10 days, and the second order took a little longer because of the Lunar New Year, around 16 days.

Let's get into the haul!

Etude House Big Cover Concealer Cushion ($8.78): I am definitely going to review this concealer since I purchased 4 out of 6 of them. These are all the shades offered: Illuminate, Mint, Peach Pink, Vanilla, Beige, and Sand. I have Mint and Peach Pink and couldn't decide which shade would conceal blemishes so I went with Vanilla and Beige. I've noticed many Western brands have been releasing color correctors this season and these concealers fall into that category. By the way, I only own a few products from Etude House. I find their packaging extremely cute but the brand is a little too young for me in general. Their target age group seems to fall into the 20's and I'm less than a year away from 40. *gasp* Anyway, I went against my normal inclination and got sucked into their newly released products as you'll see below.

Etude House Big Cover Tip Concealer in Beige ($7.28): Up until four years ago, I never touched concealer. I had nearly perfect skin but now concealer is my best friend. I have serious PIH that I can never seem to completely cover. There are a few concealers I really like but I'm still in search of a holy grail concealer. This Etude House one claims to hide flaws, blemishes, dark circles with full natural looking coverage. The two shades offered are 21 Beige and 23 Sand.

Etude House Play 101 Stick Foundation ($11.18): Apparently this is a collaboration with Pony for contouring. You can use the various shades to contour your face depending on your skin tone. This is a long lasting foundation stick that glides onto the skin to create a smooth and flawless looking face with a soft and creamy texture. There is no scent or fragrance added to the product. The four shades available are: #1 Fair (No 13-17 purchased), #2 Banila (No 21 Bright Tone), #3 Beige (No 21 Natural Tone), and #4 Sand (No 23). I swatched Fair on my hand and it seems like a good color match so I'm hoping it will work for my face.

Etude House Berry Delicious Color in Liquid Lips Juicy ($7.98)
The Berry Delicious collection is Etude House's latest launch with a full range of products from cream blushers to a body scrub and wash to nail polishes with pops of reds and pinks. I had to restrain myself from going crazy with the line.
There are a total of 10 Color in Liquid Lips shades available:
RD 304 Berry Apple Grande (purchased)
RD 305 Berry Berry Much
OR 207 Berry Orange Drink
OR 208 Berry Mange Tango
PK 013 Berry Banan Homemade
GR 701 Berry Kiwi Tok Tok
PP 502 Berry Beat Dancing
PK 014 Berry Cherry To Go (purchased)
PK 015 Berry Tropical Dream
RD 306 Berry Plum Squeeze (purchased)
They have a light and shiny texture without any stickiness. Provides long lasting moisture to give the appearance of healthy lips. I might purchase a few more shades if I end up loving the formula of these. I will review the liquid lips very soon since I received the order awhile ago. I usually test a product out for three weeks or so before I write up a review and I'm almost there.

Etude House Berry Delicious Fantastic Color Eye ($11.58): This is a 6 color eyeshadow palette available in two colors: #7 Strawberry Mojito (purchased) and #8 Strawberry Fondue. I wanted to purchase both palettes but decided to go for the palette with shades I don't already own. I've never tried any Etude House shadows but I've heard they're on the sheerer side.

Innisfree Apple Juicy Cleansing Tissue ($5.93 for 15 sheets): This contains apple extracts and removes makeup without being sticky. Contains a cleansing oil ingredient which removes skin impurities. I typically use cleansing tissues to remove swatches and remove makeup during the day before a workout. I've been using the Bioderma cleansing tissues which I don't really like. It has a funky smell and the tissues are a little rough. I chose the Innisfree one because the cleansing oil from the same line is pretty good. And I love the apple scent!

Skinfood V-Zone Patch Mask ($5.85 for 2): My obsession with V-line masks continues. This firms and lifts with pomegranate extract and collagen to promote a better complexion and restore elasticity to skin. I've been rather lazy with masking these days, once or twice a week as opposed to every other day. I really have to get back into it so I can start reviewing the newer masks in my stash.

Samples

2 Luke Total Skin Solution Charcoal Nose Cleansing Strips
2 Jolse Blotting Paper
Jolse Purple Hair Tie
2 Etude House Precious Mineral BB Cream Blooming Fit SPF 30/PA++
Etude House Moistfull Collagen Essence
Etude House Moistfull Collagen Deep Cream
Etude House Fresh Cherry Tint
Tony Moly Tomatox Magic Massage Pack
Tony Moly Panda's Dream White Hand Cream
Tony Moly Goat Milk Premium Cream
Tony Moly Nutra Energy Foam Cleanser
Tony Moly Intense Care Dual Effect Sleeping Pack
2 Tony Moly My Sunny Body & Family Sun Cream SPF 50+ PA+++
Tony Moly Goat Milk Moisture Mask Sheet

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Thanks for stopping by,
Jenn

Memebox Haul #6

Apparently being put on bed rest after a minor procedure equals online shopping. This haul is an accumulation of two orders. Believe it or not, sometimes I have to search the site long and hard to get the order total to $30. I miss the old days when you could make a Memebox order and get free shipping under $30 after using a code and applying a discount towards your order.

Memebox Haul #5

Blizzard conditions here in NYC and the east coast today. Crossing the street to get to the gym this morning with all the wind proved to be more difficult than I thought it would be.

The view from my apartment this morning. Where's the East River?

I feel like it's been FOREVER since I've done a haul and purchased anything beauty related. This is because I placed myself on a no buy after my last purchase, Dec. 15. I wasn't sure how I was going to do but I held my ground just short of five weeks. I even managed to stay strong during all the Christmas and New Year sales. And the biggest benefit to the no buy was seeing the amount of money I saved in my account over the past month!

Anyway...there were some things from Memebox I'd been eyeing over the past few weeks so I decided to put in an order. I received a tracking number the day I made the order which has never happened to me before. The people in the warehouse must be working at lightning speed or I got extremely lucky. 

Ko So Young on the insert.

Ryo Anti-Hair Loss Shampoo for Oily Scalp ($16)
Troubled over excessively greasy and sticky hair? This must be because your scalp produces an imbalance amount of moisture due to lack of nutrients! Ryo’s hair Shampoo for Oily Scalp is specially formulated with premium herbal extracts that helps regulate the scalp’s moisture levels. This also delivers an abundant amount of nutrients to keep the scalp healthy and clean.

Yes, I have excessively greasy hair at the roots! I've tried "training" my hair in the past by avoiding frequent washings but my hair type doesn't seem to respond to it. I've used other Korean shampoo brands before like Daengimori and Skylake but this Ryo (the brand is under the umbrella of Amore Pacific Corp.) one looks promising. Less hair falling out in the shower is always a good thing. Plus, Ko So Young represents and endorses the brand. She's an actress (although she hasn't been active since she married Jang Dong Gun, another popular actor, and had 2 children), model, fashionista, and has great hair. The shampoo has a heavy ginseng scent which I happen to like but I know there are people out there who dislike the scent.

Tosowoong Dr. Troubex Soothing Mask Pack ($1.50)
Worried about acneic and troubled skin? This mask provides intensive relief to irritated and troubled skin. It contains centella asiatica extract and aloe vera leaf extract which both work as perfect anti-inflammatory and antibacterial agents to help the skin recover. It is also specially formulated to aid with redness and keep the skin’s hydration levels balanced.

Not much to say about this without having tried it but I do have acne, troubled skin that needs relief at certain times of the month. Most likely I'll wait for a major breakout to happen and write up a review afterwards.

Bon Vivant Botanical Mask Pack Clarifying & Hydrating Rose ($2)
I was really tempted to break my no buy when I saw these masks released for $1 each on the website. Fortunately for me, they sold out in the blink of an eye before I had a chance to place them in my cart. They reappeared a few days later but with a $1 increase. You can also pick up a box set with 10 masks inside for $15. The retail value is $30 so Memebox may raise the price at some point in the future. *fingers crossed* they don't do this! I bought 2 masks since I didn't want to commit to a whole box without trying one first. As expected, the response on these masks have been positive.

Bon Vivant Botanical Mask Pack Pore Tightening & Sebum Control ($2)
I also purchased two of these which contain tea tree and peppermint leaf.

Beauty of Joseon Dynasty Cream ($22)
A multifunctional skincare cream that embraces natural oriental beauty by giving you fair, soft and youthful skin. Infused with premium natural ingredients including Korean ginseng and orchid extract, this cream is rich in high quality nutrients beneficial to the skin’s improvement. It provides proper moisture to keep the skin beautifully glowy all throughout the day while also balancing melanin production to enhance complexion. This also serves as an excellent anti-aging cream as it effectively firms and improves elasticity of the skin to diminish appearance of wrinkles and fine lines.

I've heard so many amazing things about this cream recently that I had to see for myself what all the fuss was about. You can use this in a variety of ways as a sleeping pack, massage cream, or a makeup base before applying foundation. Of lesser importance, there used to be a pink rice paper cover over the jar which seemed to help with product leakage. I had no issues with my cream when it arrived and everything was intact minus the paper. However many Membox customers who ordered this had spillage issues with their cream upon receiving it. Personally, I think the rice paper serves more as a cosmetic purpose than a functional purpose in terms of protecting the product but the lack of a paper cover has some people upset about it. All I really care about it how the dynasty cream can help my skin.

I also received an extra Tosowoong Pure Green Tea Mask as a sample. I'm always appreciative of free sheet masks because you can never have too many in your stash!

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Thanks for stopping by,
Jenn

Tester Korea Haul Part 2

Here's the second part to my Tester Korea haul. If you haven't read part 1, click here to see what I purchased. As I stated in part 1 haul shipping has been much faster than I expected with registered air mail, the cheapest and slowest shipping option. I ordered everything on Nov. 29, received a shipping confirmation email on Dec. 4, and had the package in my hands by Dec. 15.

Tester Korea Haul Part 1

Everything was packed securely in bubble wrap.

I haven't been shopping at Tester Korea because Memebox has more or less been my jam lately.
Don't get me wrong, I still love Memebox but the company seems to be focused more on their own brand of makeup rather than curated boxes from different Korean brands. Anyway, Tester had a Black Friday event offering a discount on certain brands like Innisfree, Too Cool For School, and Etude House. Not everything I picked up was part of the event but I find their pricing to be lower in comparison to other sites. I made two orders with Tester as a birthday present to myself. I'm still waiting for the second order which is why I've split up the haul into parts 1 and 2.

Sephora VIB Haul

It's the most wonderful time of the year...when you can save some money at Sephora. I did not spend ANY money at Sephora this year because I was waiting for the VIB sale where everything is 20% off. There were some changes to the sale this year because Beauty Insiders were excluded from the sale for the first time. VIB Rouge members were disgruntled because they could only shop on certain dates (Nov. 6-9) for the sale rather than receiving the discount both weekends. They did get to shop earlier and get first dibs on everything but, when you spend $1000 or more at a store, one would expect to receive exclusive deals.

Memebox Haul #4

I've had a chance to accumulate some products from Memebox over the course of a few weeks. I try to time most of my purchases with a sale and I managed to catch the Graveyard Shift Sale. The points you earn from your order can be used towards your next purchase with the company.

Memebox Haul #3

Lately I seem to be writing mostly about hauls so I'm behind on reviews. Going out of town again this weekend but I'll have more reviews up next week or the week after that.
If you've been following my blog recently you'll know that I've been struggling with my skin, particularly in the lower parts of my face and jawline. As soon as one side clears up I have another massive breakout and the cycle continues. It's been a source of frustration and embarrassment particularly since I had clear skin through my twenties and the early part of my thirties. I've been enjoying sheet masks as a way of soothing and calming any acne flareups so I decided to make an order with Memebox.

City Pharma Haul + Paris Highlights

I'm baaack! For those of you that don't follow my Facebook page (click the like button to the right) I've just returned from Paris. I got engaged there and this trip was to celebrate our wedding anniversary. It was great to return to the city, rediscover the places we previously visited, explore new sites, and eat delicious food.

Tester Korea Haul + Memebox

I've recently discovered the joys of shopping the samples section at Tester Korea. I'm inundated with too many full size products to justify buying more so I've convinced myself it makes sense to purchase samples. Plus you save money on shipping by purchasing packets since Tester bases their shipping costs by weight. By the way shipping was unusually fast this time around, a little under two weeks which is lightening fast for selecting the registered air mail option. It's the cheapest and slowest shipping option. The order total was around $35.

Tester Korea Haul + Harmon

I've done a little shopping at Harmon Face Values and Tester Korea over the course of the past few weeks. By now, if you're a regular reader of my blog, you know my love for Harmon and their discounts. You can use those 20% off coupons from Bed Bath & Beyond on a single item in addition to manufacturer coupons. I had an extra incentive to shop at the store because they sent me a $20 off $50 purchase coupon. I won't include the boring essentials like hand sanitizer, toothpaste, or body wash so you'll only see the makeup items I purchased from the store.

Memebox Haul #2

Remember when I asked for more sales at Memebox like the $5 deals and steals sale? Well, my wish was granted because there was a summer sale one week later! This sale was even better with some products, mostly sheet masks, as low as $1. In fact, some of the $5 products from the previous sale were lowered to $3 during the summer sale. I was fortunate enough to catch it with a notification email from Memebox. You must act fast when there are promotions like this because everything sells out like wildfire.

Memebox Haul #1

Last week Memebox had an amazing $5 deals and steals sale. I'm assuming these items were either being discontinued or Memebox needed to clear out some inventory. Whatever the reason, the sale was too good of an opportunity to pass up. (That's what I say to myself every time there's a sale.)

There was some major frustration involved in the ordering process and it was a rather nerve wracking experience. Perhaps I'm being a little melodramatic but I am a musician by trade. By the time I was ready to check out of my cart, half of the products in it were sold out. This happened to me multiple times and I lost things like the Holika Holika Naked Foundation Powder, some Peripera lip products, and a Peripera BB Cushion. Memebox was adding products to the sale page each day at random times. Basically you either got lucky or had to stalk the site and be ready to check out in a hot minute. I had no time to research what I was buying but, hey, you can't even purchase most drugstore products for $5 these days.

Tester Korea Haul + Other

These days I'm obsessed with cushion compacts. I'm not sure what triggered this obsession, perhaps the Iope Air Cushion XP, but I'm on the hunt for a few that work for my skin type in the winter and summer seasons. The first place I visited to search for some cushions was none other than Tester Korea. I haven't purchased anything from the site in more than a few months because I'd heard grumblings about slow shipping. Fortunately, I received my order in 8 business days which was much faster than I expected.

If you register on the site, you can get a 10-20% discount on certain brands and there is also a section under Event 50% where products are heavily discounted. I find Tester to have the cheapest prices but you have to be willing to wait for the goodies you order. Currently 1,115.30 won is equivalent to the American dollar. All prices are listed in won and shipping costs are based on weight. There are 4 types of shipping: Registered Air Mail, K-packet, EMS, and Air Parcel. I usually opt for Air Mail since it's the cheapest. But this time there was hardly any difference, about 1000 won, between Air Mail and K-packet shipping so I chose to go with the latter.

Drugstore Haul

That's right, it's a drugstore haul!!! I didn't purchase these products all at once but over the course of a few weeks from Harmon Face Values and Amazon. I love Harmon because their prices tend to be cheaper than other drugstores in NYC. They are a subsidiary of Bed Bath & Beyond and advertise themselves as a discount health and beauty store. Typically, the drugstore beauty products sold at Amazon are a bit more expensive but I used a gift card to make the purchase.

Bare Minerals Haul

I've been holding on to a gift card from bareMinerals for quite some time. Most of the products I purchased were from the last chance section since I wasn't specifically looking for anything.

TesterKorea Haul

I've finally received my second order from TesterKorea one month after I first placed the order. It took the company quite some time to gather together my order and then the package seemed to be sitting in customs for what seemed like forever. I placed the order on Wednesday, March 4th and it wasn't shipped out until Thursday, March 16th.

Tester Korea Haul

Finally my Tester Korea order has arrived. Well, actually, it came in last week. It took exactly 22 days to arrive from the time I placed the order. I was extremely lucky because the average delivery time is more like 4-6 weeks depending on your shipping option. I chose the cheapest option, registered air mail. (Good things come to those who wait)! Packages usually sit in customs for who knows how long which is the reason for part of the delay. It takes awhile before it passes through customs and is processed through USPS.