My Beauty Kikay Kit!



When you get to your 30's, sometimes you want to maintain that age by having your daily beauty regimen. As technologies evolve, beauty products also evolve for our convenience. And come to think of it, if you wanted to look good in your profile picture, either you can have your picture filtered or edited in photoshop or might as well post the picture unedited, natural and no filter at times you'll never be contented. But as long as you have all the beauty gadgets on your side, expensive or not, you can achieve the real beauty inside and out. (inside mean, includes being humble). They say make up makes you look older, but not for me. When I was struggling to look older, I would put on light make up so that I would not look young. Most especially when I was looking for a job, they said they can't hire an underage and high school grad. Argh!

When I first came here in South Korea, I got more exposed to some new "beauty kikays". I must say, here is heaven to me! And I just can't get enough of them. Here are some cosmetics and beauty kikay must-haves that I wanna share, although some of them may not be available in our country.

FACE

I don't wear heavy bb creams or foundation. For my everyday make-up at work, I use face powder from Mac Studio Perfect NC40 shade and some of the following eye makeup that gives a very light and nude effect on my face.

Tony Moly Perfect Eyes Eyeliner

The Perfect Eyes Eyeliner is the product of Tony Moly. I don't really use eyeliner on my lower lash line, I only use the liquid eyeliner for my eyelids from In2It which until now I'm still using it. But what I love about this eyeliner is the soft pencil that you can easily glide on your lower lash line which really gives a perfect eye bug free look :)

Etude "Drawing" Eyebrow Pencil

This eyebrow pencil from Etude has a very good consistency when you draw this  on your brow. It is very easy to use because of the angled shape point of the pencil. So if you're the busy type of person like me who is always on the rush in the morning to apply make-up, this one is just perfect.

MAC Pro Long wear Concealer

I guess concealers are my BFF's for life. A day without it when I'm outside will be the worse day of my life. I finally found the perfect concealer for me when I was shopping (actually just window shopping, i don't remember well) at the Mac Cosmetics inside Lotte Department Store. Well, they tried it on me and I told them I was using the Mac foundation powder in NC40 shade so they gave me the NC35 shade. Should be one shade lighter than your powder or same shade is ok. The 9ml or .30 fl.oz would probably last around 8 months to 1 year depends on how much you use it but should be applied with just a very small drop on your eye area. The one I have is almost 8 months and the bottle is almost half, I assume it will take more 5months for me to consume.

Faceshop "Face it" Maxx Mascara

Faceshop is not really my favorite brand but I guess their mascara is the only one that I can't live without. I bought this product twice already, the other is the purple one which is for more "volume" but the one that I prefer most is the blue one which is for "long lash".  When you use this mascara there's no need for the eyelash curler which at times I am scared of using (you know what I mean), and it definitely give a long lash effect!

Burts Bees Lip Balm

Before applying lipstick I moisturize my lip first by applying the lip balm from Burts Bees. This has a moisturizing effect that doesn't dry and has a cooling effect (like mint) on my lips. 

HAIR

I have a stubborn straight hair. Yes not wavy or curl, and sometimes I wish I was born with natural curly hair so I won't curl it everyday. I bought curling iron which often times the curl won't last, after around few hours my hair will still be straight. So I decided to get digital perm which cost me around 120bucks. But then again after 2 months or so, the straight hair is showing some signs again. So I have no choice but to buy the curlers which I put every night, so in the morning I will have bouncy curly hair and it last for a day in fairness.

4040 Style Curling Essence 2X



This curling essence by Amos Professional is what they are raving most in here in Korea for those who are so obsessed with styling their curls like me.  I guess you can only buy this in hair salon and I haven't seen this one displayed in some department store. My hairstylist here recommended it and its really good for wavy hair. It controls rough and frizzy hair which gives my hair a smooth and good polish. Before I put on my rollers, I apply a small amount of this on the ends.

Strawberry Sponge Hair Curlers

My new found discovery at Olive Young is this pretty and foamy curlers. Yes I bought this for my convenience so I can sleep on it. And it is very comfortable to sleep with using this soft sponges in your hair and in the morning you will achieve that curly and bouncy hair you ever wanted. You just need to apply a small amount of that styling lotion of your choice, then put those curlers on. You can watch videos on youtube if you want to know more on how to use it like what I did.

Shiseido Tsubaki Head Spa Conditioner

I can use any shampoo for this conditioner from Shiseido and it perfectly works for my hair most especially when its winter. I had this intense conditioner last year, and I still have more of it now. I think 1 gallon would last a year for me because I don't really use it everyday. I also recommend the shampoo of this Japanese brand, although both are a bit expensive.

Biosilk Silk Therapy Hair Mist

Biosilk brand from Farouk Systems is very popular with their silk straight serum for frizzy and dry hair. I've used that before but then I have to apply a very small amount so that it would last for around a year or so. A bit expensive though but for tropical country like ours, when you use silk therapy leave on serum you won't probably see the effect. This works best on winter when my hair gets dry, I bought the hair mist so I can use it also on summertime and its much cheaper compared to the serum. Hair Mist is good for straight long hair, and you can see it truly shines all day. This is around 7-9$ here in Korea, but you can find cheaper deals in Amazon.

BODY

Epilin Hair Remover

Looking for a good hair wax remover for you legs or underarms? Epilin wax from Watsons or SM is a good find and I truly recommend it because the wax easily dries in less than a minute and pulls all the the hair with its roots that doesn't leave a chicken skin effect. A good find, effective and very affordable at around P100-200 depends on the size.

Epilator

My alternative apart from waxing, is using the epilator. If I'm in a hurry or travelling, epilator is the one I can always rely on. For first timers it will be freakin' painful but as for me, been using it several times especially for my legs, I guess I already have endured the pain. You can use any brand but branded  ones are more effective and durable.





Tony Moly Shiny Foot Peeling Liquid

Foot Spa here in Korea is a bit expensive, (around 30-50 bucks) so at times we need to think of other ways yet effective way to have a smooth baby feet. We tried this foot peeling a year ago and I still use it 'til now. I love the effect and it really makes my feet smooth and silky. It removes all dead skin of your foot, after a few days. It will only take one hour of your time soaking your feet inside the foot bag with liquid as it also exfoliates the entire part of your foot. This is one of my favorite "must-haves" here in Korea but I guess if you will buy this in the Philippines, you'd think you will just go to your favorite foot spa or salon. It's around 7-8 bucks here but footspa is i think around P250-500pesos. But we're not even sure if they could really remove all of your foot's dead skin.  


Burts Bees' Miracle Salve

One of my travel buddy because of it's usefulness for moisturizing your hair, hands and body. Yes, it's all in one package :) It doesn't leave greasy or oily thingy on your hands because of the natural ingredient made from 100% natural beeswax. I love it, i don't need to bring body lotion, hair styling or hand lotion whenever I travel. I can easily apply on some dry parts of my skin, from head to toe! :)



Sometimes we have to invest in some beauty products especially when you are in sales, marketing, banking, academe and other profession that would require you to be presentable and neat. (at least)