My First Althea Korea Haul

Asian skin care is all the rage nowadays, particularly Korean ones. I only recently got into Korean products because of my favorite YouTubers (Edward Avila, Joan Kim, Elainemokk, and Eunice from the wishtrend channel). I realized that I needed to up my skin care game because of them. I also wanted to personally see what's the deal with Korean products and how they are different from the usual Western and local drugstore skin care products that I purchase.

Because of that, I became a lurker of online shops that carry K-beauty products such as Althea Korea, Wishtrend, StyleKorean, and Soko Glam. After much deliberation (price and estimated arrival time comparisons), I finally decided to get my hands on some korean products through Althea Korea.

My first transaction from them was on January 21, 2017. The box arrived after 14 days. I took advantage of the Chinese New Year Sharing is Caring Sale wherein I got 2 for the price of 1 + a freebie: PureSmile Snail Treatment + a gift certificate worth 188php! I was able to purchase the ever-popular Klairs Supple Preparation Toner and Cosrx Low PH Cleanser for a total price of 880php which is definitely a pretty good deal. My second transaction was on February 15, 2017 and the package arrived after 8 days. I was surprised because the estimated date of arrival is after 10-15 days. 


My purchases:

• Klairs Supple Preparation Toner
• Cosrx Low PH Cleanser
• Skin Food Black Sugar Mask
• Y.E.T. Hello Aloe Vera Gel
• Benton Snail Bee Essence
• W-Lab Sebum Out Powder (forgot to include it in the photo)
• Freebie: PureSmile Snail Treatment

I'll be doing a review on most of these products on the near future. I'm giving myself an ample time to try the products out so that I can review them properly. Stay tuned!

So far, my experience with Althea has been great. They have a good selection of products, competitive pricing, and reasonable delivery time. The website is really easy to navigate through. They offer free direct shipping from Korea. I'm lazy af so I'm really glad that paypal is included in their payment methods. I also really like the fact that I am able to keep track of my order.

Thinking of purchasing from Althea Korea?

Use my referral code for an additional 50php discount (total of 350php worth of new member discounts instead of just 300php) - Click here to create an account and start shopping!

Ever Bilena Blend Me Sponge Review

Everyone who knows anything about makeup knows the revolutionary sponge that changed people’s makeup game- the Beautyblender.  I’ve been trying to look for a dupe for so long.
I heard great things about the Real Techniques and supposedly, that was going to be my next purchase because I really needed to replace my Nippon sponge since it doesn’t look as great and doesn’t function as good as it used to. But guess what? I’m back to my old self again, purchasing stuff on a whim instead of letting things go as planned (buying the RT sponge). Ugh. Anyway, I thought I’d share to you my initial thoughts on my recent purchase, the Ever Bilena Blend Me Sponge.

Product Description: 

The latest beauty tool to achieve flawless coverage from your foundation, concealer or blush.

Price:

200php

Does it expand?

              It does!

First Impression Review:

What sparked my curiosity about the the EB sponge and one of the reasons why I picked it up is that its pores are much smaller than the sponges I’ve tried before. The other reason is that it is budget-friendly.

Likes:

• I noticed that it didn’t absorb a lot of foundation compared to other cheap sponges in the market. This could be because of the fact that it has smaller pores. 
• It gave me a flawless yet natural finish. Note: I wet the sponge before using it.
• I usually take a minimum of 5 minutes when blending my foundation. I have acne marks and small bumps on my face so I always make sure that everything’s blended and covered. Upon using this, I only took 2-3 minutes. OKAY, CAN WE ALL JUST TAKE A MINUTE AND APPRECIATE THE FACT THAT IT DECREASED MY BLENDING TIME. Y’ALL, THIS IS GOING TO BE MY GO-TO SPONGE WHEN I’M RUNNING LATE. (Which is like, always).
• Good for baking. Like I previously said, it doesn’t absorb a lot of product so you can easily stamp your face with powder without having the need to put on more. My previous sponge from Nippon was thirsty af. Gurl, it drinks up liquid foundation and powder like it was stranded in the Sahara Desert. 

Dislikes:

• It’s hard to blend the concealer on the under eyes and around the nose because of its shape. It’s much wider and the top isn’t narrow enough to efficiently blend those hard to reach areas. 
• I was a bit disappointed that it was stiff upon application. I think it’s because of how dense it is and its flat edge. I thought it was going to be bouncy and soft when I use it to apply product on my face because it’s squishy when I squeeze it. 😓 So I guess, just be careful when using it to blend your foundation, Don't push it onto your skin with too much force. I mean, that would be okay if the blender was really soft but it's not. What I do about it is I just lightly tap it onto my skin and it works. 
• It's hard to wash. It requires effort to just squeeze the water and liquid cleanser out of the sponge.

Overall, I think it’s a decent blending sponge. It’s really affordable and it gets the job done. It doesn’t absorb too much product. If it was softer and easier to clean, it would instantly be my HG.

Rate:

★★★☆☆
Edit: Changed my opinion about the product. From 4 stars to 3 stars; it didn't get softer over time and I found it quite tiring to wash it everyday because the sponge is really stiff. Don't get me wrong, this pink one gives me the coverage and finish that I want which is the main goal here. But the other stuff about it, I'm not very fond of.

I've been seeing great reviews on the Medium-sized ones though, I heard that one was soft so maybe give that one a try instead of this one. Besides, that's cheaper- 150php.

Carmex Lip Balm Review

Dry, chapped lips- It is a problem that almost everyone suffers from. This is usually caused by damage from the sun, excessive lip licking, and dehydration. Some people’s skincare routine only includes face products and often neglects lip care when the lips are actually also prone to damage. This is where lip balms come in. However, using any kind of lip balm wouldn’t do you any good. It is important to find the right lip balm to keep our lips healthy. Glossy lip balms and lip sticks can actually magnify the sun’s rays which may cause sun damage. Having a lip balm that not only moisturizes but also has spf in it will help in protecting the lips from sun damage. I’m glad I found a lip balm that is able to do its job well and that, my friend, is Carmex.

Product Description: 

The iconic medicated lip balm that generations have relied on to soothe and protect dry, chapped lips.·Provides long-lasting protective barrier to help healing

·Glides on smoothly to help soften and hydrate lips with moisturizing cocoa butter

·Cools and soothes lips with camphor and menthol

Ingredients:

Active Ingredients

Camphor 1.70% (External Analgesic), White Petrolatum 45.30% (Lip Protectant)

Inactive Ingredients

lanolin, cetyl esters, theobroma cacao seed butter, paraffin, beeswax, menthol, salicylic acid, phenol, vanillin, flavor

Price and Where to buy:

I bought the jar for 139php at beautymnl. It can easily be found locally. It’s available in Watsons, Mercury Drug, department stores, and leading supermarkets nationwide.

Packaging:

 I bought the lip balm in the jar form. I believe it would last longer than the one that comes in a tube. The downside about the product being in a jar form is that it can be a bit unsanitary. So I make sure that my fingers are clean before applying the lip balm in order for it to not be contaminated. Using a cotton swab is also advisable.

How I use it: 

I use my finger to apply it onto my lips. Like I said, it can be unsanitary to reapply it using your finger if you haven’t washed or applied some kind of disinfectant first on your hands. But I rarely reapply the product when I’m on the go anyway since I only apply it when I’m home. *Tip* Apply lip balm then brush your lips gently with a toothbrush to exfoliate it. Who needs a lip scrub when you can do this and get the same results?! Amirite? ;)

Longevity:

Unlike other lip balms in the market, it keeps my lips hydrated for a really long time. You would hardly feel the need to reapply unless you just ate.

My Thoughts on the Product:

There's a reason why this has been a cult-favorite for so long. It gets the job done and it performs excellently. It completely surpassed my expectations. I really love the minty feel that it gives me. Whenever I use this at night, I wake up to plump and nourished pluckers. This is currently my HG and all the other brands I have tried does not compare to this. I’ve gone through tubes of Maybelline baby lips, Avon, Watsons, etc. And let me tell you, all of those doesn't really last that long on the lips. They only last for about less than an hour unlike the Carmex lip balm. The jar will also last you a long time because a tad bit goes a long way with this one. I bought this 5 months ago and I’m only halfway through. Plus, it’s really affordable. Talk about major savings! If constantly having chapped lips is one of your problems, you need to get your hands on one of these.

Would I repurchase?

Definitely! I might buy the tube or the click stick as well so that I can bring it around everywhere I go and also for the reason that they’re more hygienic to use when I’m on the go.