Unboxing: Summer 2024 Skincare Haul

As my skincare stash from Hong Kong is dwindling now, I decided to scope out some new products. But between summer sales, late-night T&T runs, and Amazon Prime Day, it got a little out of hand:

Fresh x Juno Shen Kombucha Facial Treatment Essence in Juno Purple, Lotus Youth Preserve Resurfacing Dream Serum, and Sugar Roll-On Deodorant Antiperspirant

Kumano Hatomugi Lotion and Etude House Soonjung pH 5.5 Relief Toner

Curel Japan Intensive Moisture Care Moisture Facial Lotion II, Moisture Facial Milk, and Moisture Facial Cream

Laneige Water Bank Blue Hyaluronic Serum, Water Bank Blue Hyaluronic Cream Moisturizer, Water Bank Blue Hyaluronic Intensive Moisturizer, Water Sleeping Mask, and Pink Lemonade Lip Sleeping Mask

Farmacy Honey Halo Ultra-Hydrating Ceramide Moisturizer and Mango Lip Smoothie

Kracie Naive Face Wash in Peach Leaf and Yuzu Ceramide and Shiseido Super Mild Green Citrus Body Soap

Off & Relax Refresh Spa Shampoo and Spa Treatment

Kracie Limited Edition Ichikami Moonlight Beauty Shampoo and Conditioner Set

BTS TinyTan x Toy Story Shu Shu & Sassy Hand Cream in Jin as Alien, Suga as Hamm, J-Hope as Forky, Jimin as Rex, and Jungkook as Buzz Lightyear

BTS TinyTan x Toy Story Shu Shu & Sassy Hand Cream in Jin as Alien, Suga as Hamm, J-Hope as Forky, Jimin as Rex, and Jungkook as Buzz Lightyear

But this should last me until next year, right?

Photolog 2020: Day 328 of 366

I got goodies from Sephora! (Wow, it has been a long time since I've said that.)

Tatcha The Deep Cleanse and The Rice Wash
Fresh Umbrian Clay Purifying Face Exfoliant
Between birthday gifts from Ying, Chelsea, and myself, I got a nice little cosmetics haul! (I love that the Sephora VIB sale is always in November. I can always use my birthday as an excuse to buy overpriced cosmetics that I would never buy at full price.) Ying had asked me if I was going to get anything during the VIB sale, so I told her I was eyeing two Tatcha cleansers — The Deep Cleanse and The Rice Wash — and she just straight-up told me not to buy them because she was going to get them for me as a birthday gift. (She wanted to get me BTS merch originally, but she said I screwed up her plan because I always end up ordering everything I want from every new launch and there was nothing left for her to get me. Whoops.) 

She also got me a tube of Fresh's Umbrian Clay Pore Purifying Face Exfoliator because she had asked for exfoliator recommendations, and I said this has been one of my favourite for years and that I would be returning to it once I finish my Ole Henriksen Transforming Walnut Scrub (it's okay, but it's honestly just a glorified, extremely overpriced version of St. Ives Apricot Scrub, which retails for $5 at Walmart). So she beat me to the punch and got me a new tube first.

Laneige Lip Sleeping Mask in Grapefruit
Kiehl's Ultimate Strength Hand Salve
Sol de Janeiro Coco Cabana Cream and Brazilian Bum Bum Cream
Verb Blow Dry Brush
Chelsea got me a new full-size tube of Kiehl's Ultimate Strength Hand Salve and a new jar of Laneige's Lip Sleeping Mask in Grapefruit — my go-to ride-or-die favourites, especially for winter. And for myself, I took advantage of the 20% discount to splurge on two items I would never normally buy: Sol de Janeiro's Coco Cabana Body Cream and Brazilian Bum Bum Cream. I tried a couple samples a while ago and surprised myself by actually loving their scents (coconut praline and pistachio vanilla, respectively), but the main reason I got them is because I'm not allergic to them (!!!). I'm always trying to find a good scented body cream that is actually moisturizing and won't break me out into rash or eczema, but unfortunately, my favourite scents are usually citrus-based, and I'm allergic to almost all of those fragrance mixes. I guess I just had to look for warm scents. Who knew I would ever like vanilla again?

Oh, and I also got a new Verb Blow Dry Brush. I have to replace mine every year because it starts to get warped and the bristles get mangled from blow drying every day. (My old one was honestly starting to look deformed. Frankly, I was just waiting for the VIB sale to get a new one.) But there's nothing else that makes hair drying faster, which is especially important to me because I wash my hair everyday and drying hair is tedious AF. (Seriously, this brush cuts my hair drying time so much that I can dry all of my coarse, medium-to-long length hair in less than 5 minutes.) And that's it. I won't be shopping at Sephora for another six months (at least), but I'm thankful my friends spoiled me this year! 

Photolog 2020: Day 204 of 366

Wet Brush Original Detangler, Dove Purifying Detox Green Clay Body Wash, Dove Awakening Pear & Aloe Vera Body Wash, Aveeno Skin Relief Moisturizing Lotion, and Crest Pro Health Advanced Mouthwash
Seemed to run out of everything all at once, so I went back to Walmart today to stock up on some essentials. Frankly, going to Walmart is pretty much the only reason I bother going out these days.

Photolog 2020: Day 182 of 366

Rocky Mountain Soap Co. Natural Bar Soap in Pumpkin, Lemongrass, and Juicy Orange
My order from Rocky Mountain Soap Co. arrived today! I was on the hunt for some new all-natural bar soap (that is still fun yet affordable), which is how I found Rocky Mountain Soap to begin with. I picked out three different ones in Pumpkin, Lemongrass, and Juicy Orange — I like something light, fruity, and citrusy — that are naturally scented because it seems that all my skin allergies come from chemical antimicrobials and fragrance mixes.

Rocky Mountain Soap Co. Wild Kindness Shampoo in Rosemary Mint and Wild Kindness Conditioner in Orange & Jasmine
Which led me to their haircare. After being loyal to Function of Beauty for two years, the latest batch I got has been causing eczema to break out behind my ears as well as giving me mild hand eczema, and I found out that I'm allergic to something they use in that specific fragrance (geraniol and citronellal). So I thought it would be a good opportunity to try out Rocky Mountain's haircare to replace Function of Beauty (which is also quite expensive), because Rocky Mountain Soap only uses simple natural ingredients in their products. Thus, I decided to get their Wild Kindness Shampoo in Rosemary Mint (for normal hair) and the Wild Kindness Conditioner in Orange & Jasmine (for all hair types), both of which are made up of 10 or less natural ingredients, none of which I'm allergic to, and have insanely good reviews.

Rocky Mountain Soap Co. The Daily Oat Lotion and Omega 3 Hand Cream in Lemongrass
Finally, what I've really missed the most since having to cut out so many products with allergens is scented body lotion and hand cream. Nothing wrong with unscented products — I just find them really boring. My favourite scents in body products are citrus-based, but the only problem with most brands is that they use citronellal in basically all citrus- or fruit-scented products. So I also ordered a bottle of The Daily Oat Lotion and a tube of the Omega 3 Hand Cream in Lemongrass, which both use lemongrass oil to add fragrance. I never thought I'd be someone who got into all-natural products, but it seems like my body is revolting against chemicals now, so we'll see how this goes. And, hey, if I can support a Canadian company while I'm at it, why the hell not?

Photolog 2020: Day 103 of 366

Just came back home from braving a trip to Walmart. Needed a bunch of groceries and some household supplies. Plus body wash that smells like mango cake. And hand soap that I'm not allergic to (they literally had one bottle of the Basil scent left — I'll need to see if Amazon has any in stock 'cause I'm going through one bottle every three weeks). And a new tube of hand cream that works just as well as the $31 one I was using (the more I wash my hands, the more hand cream I need to apply). And my go-to hairspray 'cause I ran out and I still need to look somewhat kempt at work. What I was really hoping to get was some Lysol spray and/or wipes plus hand sanitizer from any brand, but it was just wishful thinking.

Photolog 2020: Day 97 of 366

Excitement of the day: I got my latest Function of Beauty order! My last formula was a little too heavy for my hair (almost too moisturizing?), so I changed my "hair goals" to fix split ends, hydrate, control oil, soothe scalp, and volumize. I also changed up the colours (lavender for the shampoo and baby blue for the conditioner) and picked their new limited edition spring scent, "Strike a Rose," which is a mix of rose and black currant. (I thought it would smell more like Diptyque's Baies candle, which I adore, but this leans more rose-heavy.) I don't normally go for such floral fragrances, but I wanted to switch it up a bit to keep things interesting. I will say that I already like it more than the "Cherry Bl(awesome)" scent I got last time (it ended up being more cherry than blossom). Cross fingers that the formula is better, too.

Photolog 2020: Day 6 of 366

Got my delivery from Function of Beauty today! Just in time, 'cause I am literally on the last pump of my old shampoo and conditioner. I got the same formula as I had last time (replenish hair, strengthen, volumize, hydrate, fix split ends), but changed the scent to cherry blossom and the colour to pink (you know, to keep it interesting). The conditioner looks exactly like Pepto Bismol and the customizing stickers aren't as cute this time around, but they do smell pretty good.

Photolog 2019: Day 238 of 365

My latest shampoo and conditioner from Function of Beauty arrived today! I've timed my subscription perfectly so that my order arrives just as my old shampoo and conditioner are very nearly finished (it takes me just over four months). I've been super happy with Function of Beauty thus far (it's been a year now), so I continue with my subscription even though it's on the pricier side (it's $49 USD for two 16 oz bottles of shampoo and conditioner). Granted, my hair isn't that damaged to begin with since I don't dye it nor do I really style it (though I do blow dry it every day), but my custom formula keeps my hair smooth, shiny, healthy, and hydrated. Most of all, it doesn't irritate my scalp and it doesn't give me hand eczema, so that's an automatic win for me. I decided on the "Nude Peach" scent this time, which mixes peach and citrus, so I obviously changed the colours to peach (shampoo) and yellow (conditioner) to match. It might be the best scent I've had so far. Plus, they give you a sheet of stickers to spruce up the bottles so they look extra cute. Who says washing your hair has to be boring?

Photolog 2019: Day 114 of 365

My triannual shampoo and conditioner delivery from Function of Beauty arrived today! (I was originally subscribed to have them deliver my shampoo and conditioner every three months, but it actually takes me a little over four months to finish a full size 16 oz. bottle, and I wash my hair everyday. I can't imagine anyone needing more than that, unless it was for public use like at a salon or something.) Anyway, I kept the same formula (replenish hair + strengthen + volumize + hydrate + fix split ends) and the light green shades for both shampoo and conditioner, but decided to change the scent to their new pear-apple fragrance for spring/summer. They also randomly added stickers to my box to decorate the bottles with, so you know, I got creative. And I think they look pretty darn cute, if I do say so myself.

Photolog 2018: Day 353 of 365

Boscia Black Charcoal Blotting Linens, NARS Pro-Prime Smudge Proof Eyeshadow Base, and NARS Radiant Creamy Concealer in Ginger
Urban Decay Perversion Mascara x 2, Anastasia Beverly Hills Brow Wiz in Soft Brown and Medium Brown
Laneige Essential Power Skin Toner for Combination to Oily Skin and Normal to Dry Skin
Verb Blow Dry Brush
My Sephora order arrived today! (Canada Post is really stepping up their game for the holidays. I put my order in just before midnight on Monday and it was delivered today.) I guess Sephora is hurting for business right now because they offered yet another 20% discount offer for VIB Rouge members this past weekend, even though it's only been a couple weeks since their "$25 off a $75 purchase" offer, and all of November was basically their VIB sale. I mean, this is great for those of us who use a lot of products from Sephora regularly, but I do think this speaks volumes of the cosmetics retail industry at large right now. I'm certainly not complaining, but in all my years of being a Rouge member with Sephora, I've never seen them so rampant with the sales offers. And as I'm not one to turn down a discount at Sephora, I used this opportunity to stock up on some of my staples, so I really won't need to shop at Sephora again until the next VIB sale.

Photolog 2018: Day 350 of 365

Canada Post must be working extra hard right now to keep up with all the backlog from the strikes 'cause it's Sunday and Canada Post actually delivered my package from Function of Beauty this afternoon. I'm not complaining or anything, I just wasn't expecting to receive it on the weekend so it was a pleasant surprise. Anyway, I decided to bite the bullet and actually make a subscription with Function of Beauty that would send me 16oz bottles of my custom shampoo and conditioner every three months. I've been so pleased with the shampoo and conditioner I ordered from them in August that I've decided to use them exclusively. They've made my hair smoother, shinier, and more hydrated without my scalp feeling oily at the end of the night, which is important because I wash my hair everyday. And the best part is, I'm not allergic to it. I don't mean irritating my scalp, either. I mean my hands aren't allergic to them. The biggest struggle with having had hand eczema for years and finding out exactly what I'm allergic to is finding detergents that won't break out my hands again. (Knock on wood, but now that I know which ingredients to look out for, my hands have cleared completely of hand eczema.) I've had excellent results with Function of Beauty, so I'm sticking to them. I did switch up the colour and scent this time around to keep it fun — a light seafoam green and eucalyptus mint for this winter. (I chose an ocean blue colour and the coconut pineapple scent this past summer.) Just in time, too, 'cause I'm just reaching the end of the last ones I ordered.

Photolog 2018: Day 243 of 365

I've been intrigued by Function of Beauty for some time now and finally decided to check them out for real. They're a NYC-based company that makes "personalized haircare based on hair type, goals, and preferences" and is "cruelty-free, vegan, and formulated without toxins." The concept of custom haircare is unique in itself and enough reason to be interested in them, but what really got people to notice them was their aesthetic. I actually found them through a few people I follow on Instagram, who posted their own custom bottles of shampoo and conditioner. My immediate thought was, "Ooooh, those are pretty!" before reading some really good customer reviews on how their personalized shampoos and conditioners made a noticeable difference in the look, feel, and texture of their hair. And then over the past month, their ads started showing up on my Instagram feed with some regularity. So to further prove that Instagram advertising works, I finally decided to take the plunge.

First, you fill in this hair profile, where you input your hair type, hair structure, scalp moisture, five "hair goals," the name you want printed on the bottle, the colour of your shampoo and conditioner, the scent of your shampoo and conditioner, and the fragrance strength. For myself, I have straight, medium density hair with a normal scalp, and I wanted my haircare to replenish, fix split ends, strengthen, hydrate, and volumize. I chose their new limited edition ocean blue colour (for me, this colour is pure happiness) for both my shampoo and conditioner with the "feeling (f)ineapple" scent, which smells like coconut and pineapple. (I was in a summery mood.) I guess I was feeling really bougie because two 16oz bottles ended up being $61 USD after tax and shipping (it's free shipping with the monthly replenishment programs, but I didn't want to commit so soon so I only chose to order it once). We'll see if they're actually worth it when I take a look at the quality of my hair over the next couple months. At the very least, they smell really good and look really freaking cute in my shower. Anything to make washing hair less tedious, right?

Photolog 2018: Day 100 of 365

My Sephora order arrived today! It's been a minute since I actually bought something from Sephora. (I know, you're proud of me, right? I basically traded in makeup for BTS merch.) Plus, I'm on a makeup ban since I literally threw out ten garbage bags full of cosmetics over the past few weeks (when you're getting your house ready to sell and you have over a decade's worth of stuff just lying around, there just isn't time to hesitate to throw something out). I didn't get anything too exciting, actually, just a new Verb Blow Dry Brush (my old one got totally melted from the heat from my blow dryer, ironically, but it's still the best brush I've used for blow drying) and the Surratt Beauty Relevée Lash Curler (which finally got re-stocked after being unavailable for months). However, the Surratt Beauty lash curler is officially the best one I have ever used, ever. Better than my previous holy grail by Shu Uemura. The Surratt one has a flatter curvature and a much wider mouth, so it actually gets every single one of my lashes curled in one go, even the little baby ones near my tear ducts (the Shu Uemura one doesn't get all my lashes in one clamp — I have to maneuver it a few times to get all my lashes curled, and even then, there are the few stray ones that just refuse to get in its grip). At $33, it is also the most expensive curler I have ever bought and definitely one of the pricer ones in the industry in general, and I'm sure a lot of that is just paying for packaging (it comes in a felt drawstring bag and a nice sleek box), but it is worth every damn penny.

Pick-Ups & Deliveries: Haul No. 70

Happy Halloween! Halloween means it's the end of October, which means it's time for my October haul post.

Shu Uemura x Super Mario Bros. Cleansing Oil Shampoo
Shu Uemura x Super Mario Bros. Skin Perfector Makeup Refresher Mist in Sakura and Yuzu
Shu Uemura x Super Mario Bros. Invincible Superstar Premium Curler
Shu Uemura x Super Mario Bros. Rouge Unlimited Sheer Shine Lipstick in Saved Peach and Stage Cleared
Shu Uemura revealed their holiday collection a couple months ago, and when I found out that it was a collaboration with Nintendo's Super Mario Bros., my inner '80s child sprang to life and I knew I had to get my hands on it, if only for nostalgia's sake. Luckily, there were products included in the collection that I had long wanted to try out from Shu Uemura, including the Cleansing Oil Shampoo, and the Skin Perfector Makeup Refresher Mists in Sakura and Yuzu. I also got my favourite eyelash curler (it comes with a medallion chain of the iconic Super Mario Bros. gold star!) because my old one is getting quite worn. The only makeup items I bought from this collection are the two shades of Rouge Unlimited Sheer Shine Lipstick in Saved Peach and Stage Cleared — the only makeup products that I would actually use (hard pass to cushion blushes and coloured eye pencils) and didn't already have a hundred dupes for (like every red matte lipstick ever made, or this boring face palette).
Tatcha Balanced Pore Perfecting Water Gel and The Water Cream
Drunk Elephant B-Hydra Intensive Hydration Gel and TLC Framboos Glycolic Night Serum
Volition Turmeric Brightening Polish
Sephora had their Friends & Family sale this month, for which my friend Chelsea kindly gave me a coupon for, so I decided to stock up on some skincare. I got a couple of Tatcha moisturizers — The Water Gel, which I love for day, and the more nutrient-rich The Water Cream, which I will use as my night cream — and two Drunk Elephant serums that I've been wanting to try for a while: the B-Hydra Intensive Hydration Gel for a boost of hydration in the day, and the TLC Framboos Glycolic Night Serum to help with texture and skintone at night (I'm gonna see if I like it better than Lauder's Advanced Night Repair). I also picked up a tube of Turmeric Brightening Polish from a new indie beauty brand called Volition, who creates all of their products based on real consumer suggestions. They've gotten nothing but rave reviews across the board, so if I end up loving this exfoliator, I'll definitely try out some of their other products.
Anastasia Beverly Hills Sugar Glow Kit
Becca Après Ski Glow Face Palette
NARS x Man Ray Overexposed Glow Highlighter
NARS Audacious Lipsticks in Dayle and Vibeke
Obviously, I picked up a few makeup items, too, because it would've been silly not to take advantage of a 20% discount. So I got two new face palettes — the Anastasia Beverly Hills Sugar Glow Kit because you know I cannot resist any of their highlighting palettes, plus Becca's gorgeous new Après Ski Face Palette — and a few NARS items: the beautiful new Overexposed Glow Highlighter from their Man Ray holiday collaboration, and two of the online exclusive Audacious Lipsticks in Dayle (a mauve pink) and Vibeke (a peachy nude). I also took the opportunity to pick up another 100 ml bottle of my favourite Sugar Lychee Eau de Parfum 'cause I go through it like water. Of course, Sephora's VIB sale is coming up this week as well... Fuck. No, I need to control myself. This is getting out of hand.
MAC Liptensity Lipsticks
MAC Liptensity Lip Pencils
MAC Snow Ball Opalescent Face Powders
MAC Snow Ball Extra Dimension Eyeshadows
MAC Snow Ball Eye Compacts
At the beginning of October, MAC came out with their new Liptensity range (my favourite lipstick formula from MAC) as well as the new Liptensity Lip Pencils (probably my new favourite lip liner formula, actually), so I grabbed all of those. And then two weeks later, their annual holiday collection launched — and it's by far my favourite holiday collection they've ever released. Everything about it, from the packaging to the colour story to the textures and formulas, is stunning. I got my hands on all of my must-haves; my reviews and swatches of all of them are up already (you can find them here: Opalescent Face Powders, Extra Dimension Eyeshadows, Eye Compacts in Rose Gold and Gold). I just wonder how they'll out-do themselves next year.
Quay Australia x Desi Perkins High Key Sunglasses
Quay Australia Genesis Sunglasses
I randomly got some new sunglasses from Quay Australia. I feel like sunglasses are an accessory that I didn't really get into until this year — I always had a pair for driving, but I'd just wear that one pair for years and never care to try on any others — but once I discovered Quay Australia, I was hooked. They are luxe but also affordable, and come out with some fantastic styles that fit my massive round head perfectly. Designer brands like Dior and Gucci don't fit nearly as well on me as Quay, and they're four to five times more expensive. So I got another pair of the Desi Perkins High Key sunglasses in the new olive/gold style (my old ones got completely squashed in my bag when I went to NYC in May and I haven't been able to get them to the same fit as before — they sit slightly crooked on my face no matter how I adjust the arms or nose pads), and a pair of the Genesis sunglasses in tortoiseshell with rose gold lenses because I love the oversized square shape and they were on sale for $39 from $60. I mean, if I'm gonna pay for shipping, anyway, I might as well get a second pair...
Apple 2017 MacBook Pro
On that note, October has actually become the most expensive month this year because my old 2011 MacBook Pro finally died a week ago. I was watching a YouTube video one night and the screen just went completely black and the sound went totally distorted (it was pretty scary, actually; I thought it was some supernatural shit happening 'cause this had never happened to me before). And then when it rebooted on its own, the monitor was completely discoloured and pixellated. And no matter how many times I restarted it, it wouldn't get past the startup loading screen. I went to get it looked at the next day, and as it turns out, the model of my MacBook Pro was one that they had recalled many years ago. Except the coverage to get it fixed by Apple ran out last December.
Long story short, I got a new MacBook Pro. I was planning on getting one next year because my old one was running very slowly and would take minutes just to load a single program. It still worked fine so I just kept using it, but it was getting tedious. So I saw this system failure as the world's way of telling me it was time to get a new computer. I very specifically did not want the new MacBook Pro with the Touch Bar because it only comes with Thunderbolt ports, which means I'd have to buy adapters for almost everything, including USB. (A USB! Something that should be universal!) I don't care how fancy it is or how cool it looks; the Touch Bar and Touch ID are completely unnecessary and I cannot justify a starting price of $3,699 (my minimum requirements are a 15-inch screen with 512GB storage) when it doesn't even include basic necessities. So I got the model that came out just before the stupid Touch ID ones, which includes all the standard, universal ports. No regrets, because I'm totally in love with my new laptop. But this unexpected expenditure means I really can't do any extraneous shopping for the rest of the year.