Mask #15 -- Collection of masks I tried

Hi peeps! I know I moved most of my masking reviews onto IG, so there is less content in the blog. But I found that sometimes when I am looking up reviews on some masks, they don't show up under Google. (Of course, I could also super fail at searching things) So I thought I would compile some of the masks I have tried and posted on IG, so it would be more searchable for folks looking for reviews on a specific mask. I am just posting a summary on the masks in this post, but if you click on the images, it should lead you to IG which includes a more detailed review.

First one up.. A mask I STRONGLY recommend you not to go anywhere near.

A post shared by @craftingdeeds on May 26, 2017 at 8:07pm PDT

Sally's Box Loverecipe sheet mask in kiwi. STAY AWAY!!!! This has alcohol as the 4th ingredient and the mask itself reeked of it. I had it on for 5 minutes and had to take it off due to the smell. My skin felt so dry afterwards I had to use another mask and double up on my routine to combat that dryness. As a result, I had to throw away the other flavours I had in this series as alcohol was high on most of them. Again, strongly recommend to stay away from this series!

Next up, masks I really liked!

First is the Nature Republic Aqua Collagen Solution Mask Sheet

A post shared by @craftingdeeds on Apr 21, 2017 at 9:24pm PDT

Now I got it from TK, and it was marked under the sample section. So I am thinking this mask was not made for sale at all. Anyways. I LOVE this mask! It has a nice apple blossom scent with a milky essence. The mask itself was big enough for my round face and my skin was noticeably hydrated afterwards. Too bad this is a sample so I can't buy more of it. But I think this is supposed to be a sample of the hydrogel. So I am definitely picking up the hydrogel in the future!

Next up is another mask from Nature Republic. It's the Real Nature Mask Sheet in Avocado

A post shared by @craftingdeeds on May 31, 2017 at 2:32pm PDT

The mask is big to fit most of my chubby face and its milky essence sunk in after about 10 minutes and was not sticky at all. My face was noticeably hydrated and for the price tag of roughly $1, it is definitely worth it. However, I would not recommend the rose flavour of this series as it's REALLY sticky!

Next up is the Tonymoly Aquaporin Hydrogel Mask

A post shared by @craftingdeeds on Jun 20, 2017 at 2:48pm PDT

The mask was literally dripping a steady stream of essence as soon as I took it out of the package. I had to rub the extra essence  on my neck and body as not to waste it. The mask itself was a tad difficult to fit on my face and required some laying down before it adheres to my face. It was able to last for 30 minutes before the upper lip area started to dry out, which is impressive as that area usually dries out the fastest. My skin was slightly tacky but hydrated so I definitely liked this!

Last of the mask I loved is the Mediheal Flowater Gel Mask in French Rose.

A post shared by @craftingdeeds on Jun 2, 2017 at 6:54pm PDT

Unfortunately, I think Mediheal discontinued this line of masks, which is a shame because I LOVED it.
The mask itself is pure hydrogel, so no mesh to hold it together, and it has real rose petals in the mask. It smells heavenly, like rose and tea mixed together. However, the fit is definitely a tad small for my chubby face. The intended time is max of 20 minutes but I had it on for 50 minutes and it was still very moist. It left my skin very plump and didn't leave it sticky at all. I am definitely savouring my box of masks..

Lastly, I just want to talk about a few masks I liked but it had issues.

First up, Leaders 7 Wonders Kalahari Melon Moisturizing Mask

A post shared by @craftingdeeds on May 24, 2017 at 7:05pm PDT

Love Leaders coconut gel masks. I am so glad Winners stocks them now because I just buy boxes of it. This one I really love how moisturizing it is. But it took an hour to fully sink in and not feel sticky. So I think these may have to be masks for colder weather.

Next is Skinfood Marine Food Gel Mask in Sea Cucumber.

A post shared by @craftingdeeds on Apr 19, 2017 at 1:28pm PDT

It has a lot of issues. The mask itself had trouble staying on my face and it sunk in very unevenly. But it made my skin so moisturized and smooth, I really loved the effect. However! My biggest issue with this mask, along with the rest of the Skinfood masks is that there is no expiration date! It has a production date, but it does not have a clear indication of how long it's good for, or when it expires. It irks me and for that reason, I probably won't buy any more Skinfood masks.

Lastly, I just want to talk about masks from the brand Mirum. I received these masks to try and I really love the fit of the masks as they are super big. But each one of the masks makes my skin feel so damn sticky! This includes:

A post shared by @craftingdeeds on Apr 25, 2017 at 11:46am PDT

Fresh Fruit Acaid Berry Mask

A post shared by @craftingdeeds on Apr 13, 2017 at 11:50am PDT

The Aqua Bomb Mask

A post shared by @craftingdeeds on Apr 13, 2017 at 11:50am PDT

The Wrinkle Care Mask

A post shared by @craftingdeeds on May 25, 2017 at 12:20pm PDT

And the Whitening Care Mask

Hope you peeps enjoyed my round up on some masks I have tried. Some I am sure have been reviewed quite extensively, but I hope I did review some lesser known masks.

Missha x Line Friends Tension Blusher

I told myself I wouldn't get anymore Missha x Line Friends items, seeing how I already snagged two. I refrained from getting the Tension Blusher even though Brown looks SO cute with those blush lines!!!

When I saw it on sale at BBCosmetics I just had to get it. I got PK 02 as it looks like a good inbetween shade of pink and coral. (This took forever to arrive due to Customs and Canada Post but that's an issue out of everyone's hands. -__-)

This is the official shade. it's cute right?

Anyways, this is such a cute mini cushion! It has all the components of a cushion. Cushion puff, housing for the puff and the blush itself.

I really appreciate the puff is the same kind of puffs as in regular cushions! So this deserves a picture by itself. You'll see why later on.

I don't know if you can tell.. But the colour on this is different from the official photo.. -__- Urg.. This looks super orange.

The more I looked at it, the more it looks like the swatch photo on the right instead of the left. I should've known.. T___T

Now you may be wondering why there is no swatch of it yet. It's because I wanted to do a comparison between the two cushion blushers I have. The Holika Holika x Gudetama and the Missha x Line Friends cushion blushers. So read on for the comparison.

The main reason behind the comparison is the difference in the texture of the blushes. They are both what I would consider as "cushion blushers" but the textures of the "cushion" is very different. As you can see in the photo above, the Holika Holika one on the right looks like wet powder and it retains the shape of whatever touched it last. Whereas the Missha blush is a tension blusher, with a mesh on top of a wet blush mixture.

Oh, remember I mentioned about the cushion puff for Missha is nice and deserves a picture by itself? This is the reason why. The puff for Holika Holika is Styrofoam like and doesn't absorb much product. Whereas the Missha puff is like the normal cushion puff so it is porous and absorbs some product during application. I honestly prefer the Missha puff better as it feels nicer against my skin.

Okay, swatch time, so I can show you how orange this "pinkish coral" shade is. -__-

This is Holika Holika, and it looks dry on my finger doesn't it? This is what I mean by it looks like wet powder.

Whereas the Missha looks like liquid blush on my finger.

Okay. Actual swatch on the arm! FINALLY! 😅😆

The Holika Holika blush is in Apricot, which is OR#01 and the Missha is PK #02. So you would think they shouldn't be similar shades right? I know the Missha is quite light but you should be able to see the two shades are both orange. -___- THIS IS NOT PINK MISSHA! I bought it specifically because I wanted a pinker shade. Not another orange shade.. -___-

Needless to say I am a bit annoyed with Missha over this shade difference. Good thing the packaging is cute as hell!

PS. I am surprised how pigmented Holika Holika is considering it doesn't show up that well on my skin.

Missha Near Skin Egg Yellow Pack

Can you tell what the theme of the picture is?? It's..... eggs!!! 😆😆 Well, specifically the Missha Near Skin Egg Yellow Pack I won from Missha Canada's Easter event! This is a mousse type wash-off pack that is supposed to firm up the skin by moisturizing and nourishing the skin.

I posted my first impression on the mask already but I feel like it deserve a full post. Don't want to have everything on Instagram. 😏Plus I ramble a lot and there is word limit on IG. 😅

The instructions is pretty funny to me, especially "shake properly". Because how does one know what is the proper way to shake a can? (Sarcasm if it wasn't clear enough.) That being said, you do need to give the can a good shake before the nice thick foam can be pumped out. 

On a tangent, the pump is kind of gross after the excess product dries out. So I would recommend cleaning the pump after usage. Once it is dried out, it really does look like dried egg white... -__-

Back on topic. Like the instruction said, you do need to give the can a good shake. This is because the wash off pack comes out of the can like shaving cream. It was an interesting experience for me as I have never used shaving cream before and it always looked like fun. 😊

The wash off pack comes out in a thick foam that you can spread across the face, just like shaving cream. It has a strong scent that reminds me of the Lily scent from Crabtree & Evelyn. The scent is very strong when I was testing at the back of my hand, and it lingers. But once it is on my face, my nose becomes nose blind to it very quickly. I couldn't smell it, especially after I washed it off.

Now, as for results. I tried it a few times. On the back of my hand and on my face. I am undecided on my opinion.

When tested on the back of my hand, the tested spot feels softer than the untested spot. This tells me it is moisturizing. But when tested on my face, especially alone, it feels tight...

Let me explain, usually when I use it, I use it on a dry face, and then followed by a cleanser. The instruction didn't specify it has to be a dry clean face so why not. Whenever I do this, my skin feels a little tight but it doesn't feel very dry nor is it uncomfortable. But when I tried it alone without using a cleanser afterwards, my skin feels SO tight! >__< My skin feels soft upon touch, but it feel very tight, and a little tingly. It was actually a bit uncomfortable, and this feeling continued after I put on a moisturizing toner.. T___T It makes me want to go wash my face and apply a deeply moisturizing mask to get rid of this tightness.

I like the idea of using a wash off pack that is a thick foam. But the fact that it makes my skin feel uncomfortably tight is not a good indication -_-. I think I will keep on using the wash off pack but not on its own. I'll probably keep applying it first then follow by a cleanser. This will keep the tightness to a minimum. Unfortunately this will be my last can because I will not be buying a product that makes my skin feel so uncomfortable.

Lastly, I just want to thank Missha Canada for sending this prize to me! Even though it didn't work out, I really appreciate that you are holding events on Instagram and Facebook for Canadians to try out the products!

Peripera Peri's Ink Velvet vs Airy Ink Velvet

Hi y'all~ I finally sat myself down to write this review. I was hoping I would have the 2017 S/S colours before I write this post but unfortunately with Canadian Customs and Canada Post, I am still waiting for those. So we will have to make do with the original Peripera Peri's Ink Velvet colour I have.

I bought and reviewed the original Ink Velvet in #7 Dollish Beige Rose back in November and I love it. I saw the 2017 S/S colours came on and I purchased 2 colours immediately. When I saw the Ink the Airy Velvet came out, it didn't really attract my attention as it was similar to the shades I already purchased. But the more I looked at it, the more I couldn't resist #5 Elf Light Rose and purchased it from Cosmetic.Love on eBay.

Let's compared the colours based on Peripera's official swatches.

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 As you can see, Ink Velvet #7 is more of red while Airy Ink Velvet #5 is more coral?

PACKAGING: 
The two bottles are the same size, both containing 8.0g of product. The difference is that the original Ink Velvet is in an opaque plastic bottle while the Airy Ink Velvet is in a clear plastic bottle.

If you look closely on the above image, you will see the applicator is slightly different between the two. The applicator for Airy Ink Velvet is just a tad longer than the original's applicator. It is also slightly fatter and more slanted.

SCENT:
The original Ink Velvet has a strong artificial sweet smell to it, I want to say it's supposed to be strawberry candy smell? I can tolerate it.

The Airy Ink Velvet on the other hand, has a very strong soapy smell. I think it's supposed to be a flowery smell, but urg it's translated into a very soapy smell. It lingers so it feels like I have spread soap on my lips and it traps in the back of my mouth. 😣😣

So in the scent department, the original Ink Velvet has a big win.

TEXTURE: 

The original Ink Velvet has a mousse like texture when it's applied on my lips. Just need a small dab and then spread it out with a brush or cotton swab and it dries out matte.

Whereas the Airy Ink Velvet has a lighter and smoother texture. I want to say they added a bit more oil into the formula? It does dry out matte as well but because it is a lighter texture, I need a full swipe with the applicator for the same amount of colour payout.

I think in the texture department, I prefer the lighter texture for the Airy Ink Velvet but wish it has the same colour payoff as the Ink Velvet.

COLOUR SWATCH:

 The top colour is the original Ink Velvet #7 Dollish Beige Rose, while the bottom is Airy Ink Velvet #5 Elf Light Rose.

 Here are the swatches in three different light settings. From left to right, it is with flash, natural light, and in direct sunlight. I think if you look at the flash picture as well as the direct sunlight picture, you can see the difference in the pigmentation between the two colours.

This is pressing a tissue on the swatches after I finished taking the swatches, and you can see how much came off from the Ink Velvet on top, in comparison to the Airy Ink Velvet on the bottom. But can you see that despite how much came off, the Ink Velvet is much more pigmented and opaque than the Airy Ink Velvet.

This kind of relates back to what I was saying before, that the Ink Velvet only needs a little bit for a good colour payoff. Whereas the Airy Ink Velvet requires far more in order for the same colour payoff due to its lighter texture.

LASTING EFFECT:
This is what's important to us besides pigmentation of the lip tints. The original Ink Velvet lasted me a full day. So I thought I should compare it to the longevity of the Airy Ink Velvet.

Ink Velvet #7 Dollish Beige Rose

First up is the original Ink Velvet. 😊 This is why I fell in love with Peripera and sets the base line for the two lip tints.

This is smacking my lips on the tissue paper to remove excess lip tints. This was done five minutes after application. It is little weird but the center is right after 5 minutes, bottom is after the center, and top is after bottom. Does that make sense?

As you can see, after 5 minutes, there was still a little bit of excess lip tint that came off in the middle of the tissue. Afterwards, there was a tiny bit of lip tint coming off. After that, there was nothing coming out.

Here is a collage of my lips with Ink Velvet throughout the whole day. I started at 8:26AM with bare lips. The colour was still present after lunch at 1:08PM, the bottom lip is a bit dry but that was resolved with just a tad bit of lip balm. 😝 At 4:42PM, this is over 8 hours and the colour is still present on my lips. It may not be as vibrant as the morning but you can still tell there is colour on my lips. At 10:42PM, I think there was still a little bit of colour left, and this is after 3 meals and lots of water. Can you get why I love Ink Velvet so much?

The Ink Velvet has set the bar super high with over 8 hours of wear, let's see how Airy Ink Velvet compares.

Airy Ink Velvet #Elf Light Rose

This is paper swatch of the Airy Ink Velvet. As you can see, after 5 minutes, there was quite a bit of lip tint that came off. It's like one of those kiss lip prints... -__- It's most likely due to lighter texture and the addition of more fluids into the mixture. And you can still kind of see the full mouth after the first swatch. But that removed all of the excess lip tints as the top shows absolutely nothing. ( Yes I know it makes absolutely no sense that it goes from center to bottom to top. Sorry. =__=)

At 8:26AM I had bare lips, with just a tiny bit of lip tint remained from the previous night's first impression swatch. I have put the Airy Velvet Tint at 8:29AM and it is a nice pink colour. However, by 1:03PM, the colour is pretty much worn off. And by 7:01PM, it's completely gone. So this barely passed lunch and drinks.

So I would say this only has about 4 hours of lasting power, which about half of the Ink Velvet's power. Again, I am pretty sure it's due to whatever Peripera did to the formula to make it lighter texture.

Seriously, this lasting power is not great. I had put the Ink Velvet on the bottom lip and Airy Ink Velvet on the top lip as I am writing this up. Just so I can remember what the texture is like on my lips. I had it on for at least 30 minutes and went to kiss my dog.. The poor thing got pink tint on the little white stripe on his forehead, and it's clearly from my top lip. 😅😅

Needless to say, the original Ink Velvet is the clear winner in this battle of lasting power.

OVERALL
The overall winner for the two tints is the original Ink Velvet. It has a much more pleasant scent, and has great colour payoff. I absolutely love how long last it is. I do like the lighter texture of the Airy Ink Velvet but the fact that it has a soapy scent and barely last through one meal makes it a loser in this case.

Lip tints #2

Today I am going to post swatches of the tints I have acquired in the recent months. I have couple more coming but because of problems with Canada Customs and Canada Post, I have no idea when it will arrive, so these three lip tints will do for now.

Peripera Airy Ink Velvet in #5 Elf Light Rose

When this new line of Ink Velvet was released, I was like no, I am not going to buy anything from this line because I already bought two of the 2017 S/S colours. But then I looked at the swatches again, and I just fell in love with #5 Elf Light Rose. It's such a nice nude pink, and the marketing even says MLBB (My Lips But Better).

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I was sold and purchased it rightaway from eBay because Jolse didn't have it on their website yet. I was lucky as the seller sent it via EMS for some reason, otherwise it would have taken MONTHS to get to me.

I am not going to go into too much details about this lip tint as I am preparing a comparison post between this line and the original ink velvet. So expect that post soon.

What I will say is that this has a soapy smell to it, and the application feels much lighter and smoother. The lasting power is slightly shorter than the original line. But I am in love with this colour. It really is MLBB!!!

A'Pieu Gel Like Lip in RD04 Woody Scent

I purchased this back in November along with the other A'Pieu lip tint, and it took over 3 months to get to me due to the Canada Customs and Canada Post issues. By the time I got it, I forgot what drove me to get it. ^_^;;

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The official swatches looked like a nude lipstick that is also MLBB. I think that's why I got it.

I was a bit surprised when I opened it as it looked quite dark. But upon application, it does look like a nice nude shade. This differs from the Peripera Airy Velvet #5 in that it has a pink undertone while this has a brown undertone.

This lipstick has a light sweet candy smell to it.

I think it's called Gel Like Lip due to the fact that while it is a lipstick, it goes on shiny, like a lip gloss or lip tint. But it is definitely a lipstick. Unfortunately, I find the staying power for this lipstick to be lacking. I can easily wipe it all off with a napkin. But it is a nice colour, as long as I don't eat or drink.

A'Pieu x Rilakkuma Honey Glow Serum Tint in RD02 Honey Cranberry

I was absolutely drawn by the dark vampy red of this and HAD to get it. I am glad I bought it when I did, as it were discontinued shortly after. Just unfortunate it took MONTHS to get to me but I am glad it arrived safely, as I could not reorder it again.

The tint comes in a chubby stubby tube, which is unusual for lip tints. The reason behind this is the GIANT applicator. I was quite surprised when I opened it and found the applicator to be as big as my thumbnail.

The lip tint has a fake bitter cherry smell to it, reminding me of cough syrup.

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The official swatches shows that it is a very nice dark vampy red. But when I opened it, it looked a bit toward regular red instead of dark red.

As you can see, with a light hand, I achieved a look as if my lips just bled. 😅😅 But with a full application, it is a nice red. In the picture it does look like a normal red, but I think it has something to do with my camera. It is not capturing the colours properly. In real life, the red is a little bit darker. It is nowhere as dark as the swatches from A'Pieu but it is slightly darker than my picture.

As for its lasting power, I didn't find it to last as long as the Peripera Ink Velvets. But let's face it, it's hard to find something that is comparable to them. I can wipe away most of it even after 15 minutes, but there is a little bit of tint left.

While the colour isn't exactly as the official swatches, I still find this to be a nice colour. I am looking forward to wearing it with a nice cocktail dress.