Skincare, beauty, mental health, productivity, and hamster butts
Korean skin care and makeup hauls, reviews, swatches, and how-tos.
Lately I keep thinking about how long I’ve been using and writing about Korean skincare. It’s been a looong time. Almost ten years, to be exact. I wandered into Reddit’s Skincare Addiction community sometime in 2013 and very quickly followed the mysterious mentions of “Korean snail essence” to the much smaller but already fervently dedicated [...]
Over the past couple of years, I've developed a pretty serious addiction to gel creams. I generally have at least a couple of gel creams open and in active rotation in my everyday skincare routines, because now that my skin is fully adjusted to my very high (0.14%) Curology tretinoin prescription, I don't need heavier [...]
It's been a big couple of years for COSRX. They've expanded beyond their beginnings as a small and relatively unknown brand focused on bare-bones AHA and BHA products, into a global name with a presence in brick-and-mortar retail chains like ULTA. Last year, the big COSRX news for me was the expansion of their Advanced [...]
Ingredient trends come and go (anyone else remember when starfish had a brief moment in the sun?). That's why I'm so grateful when a trendy ingredient that works well for me ends up getting popular enough to stick around. Like propolis, the featured ingredient in the serums I'm going to compare today. I love propolis. [...]
You know how I know 2021 is going to be a better year than 2020? Because it's January and I not only remembered that I want to write a best of 2020 roundup, but am actually doing it instead of pushing it aside for so long that it becomes pointless to even publish it (who [...]
High protection with a weightless, invisible finish: Missha All Around Safe Block Aqua Sun Gel almost has it all.
Serious issues deserve serious consideration and serious responses, not hot takes and snap judgments. And the current controversy over the Purito Centella Green Level Unscented Sun sunscreen is a serious one indeed.
How does the new COSRX Advanced Snail Radiance Dual Essence compare to the beloved Advanced Snail 96 Mucin Power Essence?
I'm upset. I'm upset to have fallen in love with a product. I haven't been this upset since the last time I fell in love with a lavishly priced Sulwhasoo mask, the Sulwhasoo Concentrated Ginseng Renewing Creamy Mask, and that was back in 2017. The only reason I'm not more upset right now is that while [...]
Lately it feels as if all of my writing is for outlets other than this blog, whether it's for my Instagram (home for reviews and rants that can fit into a single caption and usually only require one picture) or for other sites (which I do have to do, because bills). But I am writing, and [...]
Fifty Shades of Snail 