Hiatus

I know I have been taking a lot of time off lately, especially for a 2 posts a week blog.  I'm sorry.  I write now to say that I am taking another hiatus, and to, this time, give a reason why.

My uncle passed away this morning.  In fact, for many of you, by the time you read this I will already be on a plane to go to his funeral, and to help out my family.  Normally, when I leave, I try to have some posts done ahead of time, so that people don't notice.  This happened so quickly that I was unable to do so.

Once again, sorry for the hiatus, I hope all is well in your lives, and I will be back soon.

--Kaoru

Steamcream

Price: £10.00 for 75g from www.steamcream.co.uk


What they say:
"   * A multipurpose cream uniquely formulated using pure, unrefined steam for maximum absorption.
    * High quality skincare for all skin-types. STEAMCREAM Jar
    * Locally produced using fresh, natural and traceable ingredients.
    * Funky eco-friendly packaging designed in Japan and decorated with limited edition collectible designs.
    * Handy-sized tin for on-the-go lifestyles at an affordable price.

STEAMCREAM represents the latest concept in skincare. Using a revolutionary steam-infused manufacturing process, STEAMCREAM provides a long-lasting, intensive and effective form of skincare that can be used on face, body and hands.

STEAMCREAM have pioneered the use of a steam technique to create this unique, gentle and loosely-bound emulsion. This looseness allows each ingredient – including a moisturising and soothing oatmeal infusion, orange flower water and healing lavender oil – to breakdown and penetrate areas of the skin that other creams find hard to reach.

Packaged in a compact, flush-lid aluminium tin featuring unique and collectable designs, STEAMCREAM is a perfect on-the-go product – convenient to slip into your bag, take to work, to school, on holidays or to the gym. And it’s hand luggage friendly at just 75g!"


What I say:
I bought this cream a long time ago, actually, and when I went to throw out the now expired cream (and keep the packaging, of course), realized that I should probably write a review about it.


The texture of this cream is like that of a whipped, well, cream.  It's thick, but still light, and spreads very easily once on the skin.  I really would say that it is a loose emulsion (from what they say), because it does feel that the whipping is all that keeps this product from disintegrating back into a more liquidy, albeit fatty, state.


The smell, I would say, is a strong orange blossom perfume smell.  Personally, I hate it.  It is way too strong, and lingers way too long, preventing me from putting this anywhere near my face.  This is sad, because  it claims to be a multipurpose product, and that takes it back down to just one.  I have no idea why they would add that much fragrance to this product, and am a little alarmed, because many companies add fragrance to hide something, or use the term "fragrance" to secretly add preservatives and claim that they added none.  I am not saying this is what this company did, I'm just saying what I thought when I saw, and smelled, the totally over-the-top perfume smell.  Remember, fragrance is a personal thing, and you might love the smell of this cream.


I had no transfer or white cast problems when wearing this, but I did have "should not be worn while sweating" problems.  This cream would just melt, and become a slippery mess on my body when perspiring.  If you workout often, I don't suggest wearing this until afterwards.


Lastly, the packaging.  Love the packaging.  The tin is lightweight, a decent size, and screws closed, so no accidents from it opening in your bag.  The collectible designs are fun, and make it much easier to tell which one is yours if you live in a place where more than one person is using the same type of cream.  This is a perfect size for snacks, in my opinion, and am already planning to sanitize my tin to use for things like almonds, since I think this tin is about the standard "serving size" of them.


Overall, this is a good product, but the scent is just too strong for me to repurchase.  The cream did melt into my skin fairly easily, but it also melted out just as fast.  The texture is quite nice, and the fact that it is in a nice travel tin is also good.  Normally, if it wasn't for the scent, I could see myself using this quickly enough that the cost would be a little too much, so that's something to watch out for.  It is an okay price for just your face, but getting your body involved kinda breaks that deal.


3/5 - A few problems that might not bother others, okay.

DuWop LipVenom Sale

Just got this in my email:

 

Save 30% off our popular Mini Venom Trio for one week only (June 14th - June 20th).  This amazing deal ends on 6/20/10 at midnight EST.  Enter code TRIO to receive discount on original Mini Venom Trio only.

 

As always, free ground shipping on orders $50 or more!

Haul

So I'm back *dances of yay ensue*, and came back with a small haul, because really, when you are driving 5.5 hours to the airport and back, and that's without the rest of the traveling, there will be hauls.

My haul!

The lipsticks that are out of their boxes were actually Back 2 MAC, so I really did less damage than it looks like.  I barely remembered to grab my empties before I left, and have been meaning to take them for a while, so I didn't care about the extra baggage.

What I got:
Cornflower Pigment Sample (Thursday was the first day for counters to carry some of the pigments as a permanent thing, so I was able to pick this up)
Syrup Lipstick
Fast Play Lipstick
Lustering Lipstick (Originally supposed to be Impassioned, but they were sold out)
Cyber Lipstick
MAC 130 Brush
shu uemura P Brown 820 Eyeshadow
Givenchy 17 Island Lagoon Eyeshadow

That last one really surprised me, since I didn't think I would like it that much, and it was expensive for an eyeshadow, but I really loved the texture, and the shade when mixed.

Glad to be back.  Hopefully I'll be getting my own smartphone soon, so maybe (I say maybe) that won't happen again.  Just realized that the phone I am looking at has more megapixels than my camera... sheesh.

Ahhhh! Sorry!

Last minute business meeting, and forgot my laptop to upload something.  (Yay for borrowed phones!).  Really really really sorry, normally I have posts ready, but like I said, last minute.

On another note:

Korres 25% off with free shipping on orders over $35, from 8th of June to the 16th of June.  Code FRIENDSANDFAMILY.

Sorry!

Sorry there's no post today, but I'm currently feeling sick, and I have to go move my brother-in-law.  Postings should resume on Wednesday.

--Kaoru

O.P.I. Yoga-ta Get this Blue

image from binbin.net

Price: $4-$8, depending on source

What I say:
This is my go-to color for my toes during the summer.  I remember back in the day, when the India Collection came out, and this polish came into the scene.  It was love at first sight, and I ran (well, drove) to the nearest place that sold OPI to get this (in fact, that was how I found the place that I buy these polishes from).

Yoga-ta Get this Blue is a dark blue, almost navy, but brighter.  The closest color from their collection was Russian Blue, but I would call them sisters, not twins.  There is a slight amount of what might be called shimmer, but more fine, that is in this polish.  It reminds me of car paint, where is kinda shines.

I loved this polish so much, but unfortunately, it was limited edition, so I gently used my polish until it died from old age.  I never thought I would see it again, but recently found out that it was so popular that they brought it into their permanent line, where hopefully it will stay.

If you are interested in blues, and especially darker blues, I highly recommend giving this polish color a try.  I would say it is a cooler color, but it is one that anyone, from the palest of pales to the darkest of darks, warm and cool alike, can wear.  I have never seen anyone who didn't look good with this polish, and that is a hard thing to say about a blue.

5/5 HG