Tonymoly BCDation Multi Use Sun Oil SPF 50+ PA++++ 30 ml Review

Ingredients:

Caprylic/Capric Triglyceride, Octyldodecyl Myristate, Ethylhexyl Methoxycinnamate, Dimethicone, Homosalate, Ethylhexyl Salicylate, Phenyl Trimethicone, Diethylamino Hydroxybenzoyl Hexyl Benzoate, Methyl Trimethicone, Glyceryl Caprylate, Fragrance, Caprylyl Glycol, Rosa Centifolia Flower Oil, Calendula Officinalis Flower Oil, Cocos Nucifera (Coconut) Oil, Rubus Idaeus (Raspberry) Seed Oil, Polyglyceryl-2 Triisostearate, Water, Methylpropanediol Propanediol, Polyglyceryl-4 Caprate, Water, Polyglyceryl-2 Dipolyhydroxystearate

I try to mark the sunscreen ingredients in red and other possible irritants in lilac. Learning as I go, google is my friend etc...

Thoughts:

- The bottle is glass so I'm afraid I will break it, I have dropped a couple of glass bottles in the past (one was lash glue, so you can imagine how fun it was to try to get super sticky glue off the sink and floor!)

- Not a travel or purse friendly product

- The oil is very liquid so when I drop it on my face it almost rolls off before I am able to spread it, it's a bit messy operation

- Even though the oil made such a nice glow on my arms, my face looks just shiny (not oily though, just very shiny)

- I wouldn't wear this product on its own (like a regular sunscreen)

- Makes foundation to break and slide during the day a bit (too much oil?)

- Takes about 8-10 minutes to "dry" but still stays oily to touch

- My face turns red(dish?) for about half an hour after application

- Chemical sunscreen

- I just don't care for the flowery, heavily fragranced smell, also it lingers all day

- UPDATE: Gave me closed comedones when used several days in a row!



+ Such a beautiful result with this sun oil and a swipe of colored powder on top, so natural, as if I'm wearing nothing (however, must be so careful not to rub the oil off because it stays "oily")

+ Easy to spread

+ Feels very nice, I tried this on my hands, arms, decollete before face, made skin have a healthy glow

+ No white cast

+ Feels a bit moisturizing

+ I feel like I have nothing on my face

+ Versatile product, Tonymoly website says you can use it on its own, or mix into other skincare products or even massage into hair

+ Didn't cause me a very bad reaction despite being a chemical sunscreen... yet! UPDATE: Gave me closed comedones when used several days in a row. Well, better than pimple attack after first day? Like with the Body Shop's Skin Defence Multi-Protection Essence.

* Not sure how much I'm supposed to put the product on so it's effective. And now that I think of it, it does not replace other suncare products.

* I enjoy the feeling of oil products, might want to get something else in oil form too!

* I must admit the glass bottle looks good and feels luxurious.

* I really like the concept of this product, to be able to mix it with everything and the skincare benefits.

* Based on this product, I want to try something else too from Tonymoly. (Even though Tonymoly doesn't seem to have the best reputation?)

* UPDATE: I did try the oil with foundation in different ways, like mixing it on my hand and putting oil first and then foundation on face. Couldn't help but think that it was messy and took too much time. The end result wasn't even that nice. Had to stop testing when closed comedones decided to conquer my cheeks and forehead. I think this oil isn't meant to be used in such "large" amounts, just as a drop to your other products, however, it's then just a step that takes extra time and mess?

* Also didn't try to mix the oil with anything else yet, maybe that's how I'd get better results but again: how much am I supposed to put it and how well mix so that the product gives me effective sun protection?

Price: 

16,5 USD / 30 ml

Bought from: 

Jolse

Buy again? 

Maybe. This sun oil is passable for some situations, if you have the energy and creativity to experiment with it. UPDATE: No. 

Worth the money? 

Yes. I think so. Even though the bottle is only 30 ml, it is oil and a little goes a long way. I think 4 drops was enough to get my face covered. So I imagine this bottle lasts for maybe 3-5 months depending on the usage (if a drop is mixed into cream/foundation etc). Also the product almost does what it promises and is not too impossible to use. Tonymoly US website lists the price at 28,50 USD which I think sounds a bit steep but maybe only because I paid less.

Tosowoong Soft Touch Sun Cream SPF 32 PA++ 45 ml Review

Ingredients:

Water, Cyclopentasiloxane, Cetyl Ethylhexanoate, Hexyl Laurate, Zinc Oxide, Cyclohexasiloxane, Titanium Dioxide, Butylene Glycol, Silica, Cetyl Peg/Ppg-10/1 Dimethicone, Glycerin, Polyglyceryl-4 Isostearate, Dimethicone, Sodium Chloride, C12-15 Alkyl Benzoate, Tocopheryl Acetate, Portulaca Oleracea Extract, Nelumbium Speciosum Flower Extract, Morus Alba Root Extract, Camellia Sinensis Leaf Extract, Sorbitan Sesquioleate, Magnesium Stearate, Dimethicone/Vinyl Dimethicone Crosspolymer, Beeswax, Aluminum Hydroxide, Stearic Acid, Triethoxycaprylylsilane, Quaternium-18 Bentonite, Dimethicone/Methicone Copolymer, Disodium Edta, Potassium Sorbate, Sodium Benzoate, Phenoxyethanol, Perfume, Ci 77491, Ci 77492

I try to mark the sunscreen ingredients in red and other possible irritants in lilac. Learning as I go, google is my friend etc...

Thoughts:

- Leaves a  white cast! I'm NC20 I think and the cast is noticeable but doesn't bother me very much when I put makeup or just colored powder on top

- First I didn't hate or like the faint smell it has, but after one week it started to remind me of baby puke! The smell is definitely not a floral smell like someone described

- Takes 10 minutes to "dry", tried to put foundation on top after 3 min in a hurry once and oh god what a slippery mess

- Stays a little sticky still after drying

- Didn't mattify skin at all 



+ Easy to spread, texture is very soft cream

+ The tube is easy to use, no mess and I get the exact amount of product

+ Didn't break me out (physical sunscreen)

+ Faint smell, after two weeks I was able to ignore it despite the puke association

+ Feels moisturizing

+ Weirdly doesn't affect my make up once it's all done, stays for 8 hrs looking nice if I don't sweat, so works as a primer, doesn't pill

+ Didn't make my skin more shiny than it normally is without any make up, "natural" finish

+  Evens out imperfections and skin tone slightly

* The funny thing is, despite the white cast and stickiness, I still really like wearing this product!

* I would take a moisturizer that feels and plumps like this in a heartbeat, must take another look at the ingredients

* The tube is so cute and pink, my weakness!

* I always forget to mention, can't review the actual sun protection because I live somewhere where we don't get sun for most of the year and summers are not particularly hot or sunny and our sun certainly is not strong when we do get some

* Sunscreen Texture Comparisons

Price: 

$5.76 / 45 ml, I paid with shipping about $10 

Bought from: 

Roseroseshop

Buy again?

Maybe, if everything else I try fails. EDIT: Now, in Feb 2018, I have repurchased Soft Touch. It's not like everything else I've tried failed, I just really missed this one (weird right?! And I have like 6 sunscreens at the moment that I'm using already!). It'll be interesting to see if it clogs my pores, last year all I wanted was just to avoid big breakouts. And Soft Touch didn't cause any.

Worth the money? 

Now that's a good question. The tube lasts maybe a month and half or two months if used daily. Tosowoong Soft Touch is for a person who has very sensitive and dry skin, I think.

Elizavecca Milky Piggy Carbonated Bubble Clay Mask 100 g Review

Ingredients:

Water, Cocamidopropyl Betaine, White Clay, Acrylate Copolymer, Disodium Cocoamphodiacetate, Methyl Perfluorobutyl Ether, Sodium Lauryl Sulfate, Lauramide DEA, TEA-Cocoyl Glutamate, Green Tea Extracts, Glycerine, Dipropylene Glycol, Bentonite, Collagen, Charcoal Powder, Phenoxyethanol, Methylparaben, Flavouring Agents, Carbonated Water, Xanthan Gum, Disodium EDTA, Allantoin, Butylene Glycol, Lavender Extracts, Monarda Didyma Leaf Extracts, Peppermint Leaf Extracts, Freesia Leaf Extracts, Chamomile Flower Extracts, Rosemary Leaf Extracts

I try to mark possible irritants in lilac. Learning as I go, google is my friend etc...

Thoughts:

+ Very quick to use, takes about 10 minutes from beginning to end

+ Doesn't have much of a smell

+ Cleanses make up very well: nothing on the cotton pad used for toner afterwards

+ Cleared my skin a bit on the problem areas

+ For my fiancee who has thicker/rougher skin than I do the results were clearly there, tighter pores and smoother skin

+ Comes with a handy spatula

+ The package has instructions and ingredients listed in English! (Korean product)

+ The package has a "original number checking", a foil that you can scrape and check if the product is genuine

- Hurry to get the product all over the face before it starts bubbling: it's really fast!

- Hurry to close the lid of the jar so that it doesn't start to bubble!

- The lid is very tight and difficult to open

- Doesn't exfoliate much, just a minus because I thought it would

- Second time I used the mask, I did get red bumps on my other cheek (not pimples)

- Even though problem areas cleared, other areas felt dry the next morning (I do use toner, essence, cream, sleeping mask and still!)

- Can't really vouch for any miracle results, at least not on my skin

* So, I had to order this one, because it's so popular. There must be a reason for that, right?

* The packaging and art is so well thought out, I appreciate

* The bubbles it forms don't really tickle and I personally didn't think much of them!

* I keep the jar in a minigrip bag just in case, trying to keep if from drying

* In the future, I might use this only as spot treatment or to remove a heavy layer of make up

* Cute product that works, it just didn't wow me, or maybe just didn't meet my needs at the moment?

Price: 

I paid USD 8.67 / 100 g, price seems to be different everywhere

Bought from: 

Jolse

Buy again?

No.

Worth the money?

I think so, yes. The jar has enough for maybe 20-40 uses and it's fairly inexpensive for such an interesting and versatile product. Still, after the novelty has worn out, I don't think it's necessary worth repurchasing even though it was worth trying.

The Body Shop Skin Defence Multi-Protection Essence SPF 50 PA++++ 40 ml Review

Ingredients:

Aqua/Water/Eau, Alcohol Denat., Ethylhexyl Methoxycinnamate, Neopentyl Glycol Diheptanoate, Butyl Methoxydibenzoylmethane, Butylene Glycol, Dimethicone, Glycerin, Polymethyl Methacrylate, Cetearyl Alcohol, Phenoxyethanol, Octocrylene, Chlorphenesin, Acrylates/C10-30 Alkyl Acrylate Crosspolymer, Cetearyl Glucoside, Sclerocarya Birrea Seed Oil, Parfum/Fragrance, 3-O-Ethyl Ascorbic Acid, Sodium Hydroxide, Palmaria Palmata Extract, Carbomer, Linalool, Tocopherol, Limonene, Citronellol.

I try to mark the sunscreen ingredients in red and other possible irritants in lilac. Learning as I go, google is my friend etc...

Thoughts:

- broke me out immediately: after first day of using, 5 pimples, after second day, 10 pimples etc.

- tolerated for 3 days ("maybe this is just hormonal acne")

- felt a little warm when I put on face

- took two weeks to get my skin back to normal after stopped using

- strong smell (but not unpleasant), smells of sunscreen

- didn't moisturize much (Body Shop categorizes this product as moisturizer), skin feels a bit tight/dry

- the tube always seemed to dispense a bit too much runny product out

- chemical sunscreen

- I'm still a bit confused, because this is chemical sunscreen, does it still work if I put it on top of other moisturizer?



+ I learned to look at ingredient lists a bit in my frustration! I found out that there are physical and chemical sunscreens

+ the product didn't leave a white cast, practically unnoticeable on skin

+ easy to spread, very runny fluid like consistency

+ not sticky

+ didn't make skin shiny or oily

+ dries in about 1-2 minutes

+ didn't cause any reaction when tried using it on my hands and arms for several days before and after the break out on my face, however I wash my hands a lot

* I'm still debating with myself if it truly was this product that made me break out! What if it was hormonal after all?

* if it was this product, what are the ingredients I should avoid? Or some combination?

* for now, I'm going to try some physical sunscreens

* I would really like to love this one because everyone is raving about it :(

* I didn't get to test how this product works with foundation etc

* I will probably try one more time to put this on my face (after all I didn't get a full out allergic reaction), just not right now when my face looks to be doing so well

* The design of the package feels so luxurious!

Price: 

24,50 € / 40 ml, used to be 29,50 € when they had only one tube size, I paid 20 €

Bought from: 

The Body Shop store

Buy again? 

No. 

Worth the money? 

No, I don't think so. It's rather expensive for what it is. Even for someone who doesn't get irritation. The tube lasts maybe, a month/month and half? if applied everyday generously on face, neck. It doesn't work as a moisturizer that it's really supposed to be. The package of the product may look and feel luxurious, but using, feeling, smelling the actual product doesn't...

What is the purpose of this blog?

What is the purpose of this blog? 

Mainly for documenting the skincare and beauty products I have used and my opinions of them. This is my notebook that may or may not be useful for other people as well. I'm so grateful for all the product reviews I have found online through the years, even a couple of words, couple of photos have helped me to make my decisions! Thank you!

I also want to follow if some certain products or ingredients cause me irritations or make my skin glow. I'm soon 30 and never really thought about my skin that much before. Or, more like, didn't understand to make any research to make it better. I thought acne prone combination skin just existed and would stay like that forever, nothing could be done about it. 

I discovered toners only couple of years ago. I have never used sunscreen before. When I was teenager, I refused to use moisturizer at first. I used to pick on my skin and then lather heavy layer of foundation of top of it.I bought the cheapest products because I thought that skincare was a waste of money! I can't really blame myself as I didn't know any better. At least, I never used toothpaste, lemon or baking powder on my face. Or harsh scrubs. I had extremely sensitive skin after all so I couldn't go and test things without massive irritation.

Now, my skin isn't so oily anymore, even though it's still combination and sensitive. My main concerns are the redness, old small scars, pores... overall dullness.Slight fine lines on my forehead.  Still, I want to emphasize, that I'm not looking for eternal youth. I'm just curious to try new things and new routines. As you can probably tell by now, I'm not a professional and don't know much about skincare yet, however I'm learning all the time!

All that being said! Let my journey begin :)