Review: Etude House Bubble Tea Sleeping Masks

How cute are these? Etude House launched their Bubble Tea Sleeping packs in three different "flavours" meant for different skin types. Black tea for firming, strawberry for moisturizing and green tea for oil control. There's boba capsules that contain the main hydrating ingredients and a little straw/spoon to scoop everything out hygienically.

So, as cute as they are, how did they perform?

Let's start off with the ingredients. Every pack contains glycerin, hyaluronic acid, and the respective extract (strawberry, black tea, or green tea) within the first 10 ingredients. Awesome right? Not so much for sensitive skin. Alcohol is fifth ingredient, above all the ingredients previously mentioned except glycerin. In theory, the alcohol will help the mask to absorb without such a sticky texture, hence it's inclusion. Unfortunately for those of us who need to avoid alcohol in our skincare diet, this can prove irritating at worse, or lacklustre at best.

Boba with a spoonful of gel, and a smooshed boba to release all those hydrating ingredients.

The idea behind these masks is that there is a lightweight gel, and then boba that contains higher concentrations of active ingredients (in this case, the tea and strawberry extracts). You grab a bit of the gel and a boba capsule or two, break the boba, then apply to it your skin. I find there's a lot more gel than boba whenever I try to use the attached straw/spoon to grab the boba. Since it's kind of unhygienic to put the extra gel back, I just use it all on my face. The results with lots of gel and two boba? Nada, unless you count a sticky face for a few hours. The results with less gel and two boba (I used the extra gel on my legs)? Nada, although everything absorbed a lot better. In the morning, there was a coating of something on my face that rinsed off easily with warm water. But I didn't feel more moisturized.

The black tea pack felt slightly more moisturizing than either the strawberry or green tea, but not by much. The green tea felt the most lightweight, and least moisturizing of the three.

My skin doesn't agree with alcohol – it'll start off ok, but I slowly get dryer and dryer, until irritated spots show up. Despite that, I used each of these for a week to see how my skin fared. I didn't get any irritation, and surprisingly I didn't get any dryness over the month either. On the other hand, I was not nearly as moisturized and glowy the next day from these sleeping packs compared to others I've tried.

Would I recommend these? Not if you have dry or sensitive skin. On the other hand, if you get results from sheet masks with a high alcohol content or creams and packs containing a lot of alcohol, you might still enjoy these.

Etude House – Honey Cera Line Review

Along with the Snowy Dessert collection I reviewed last week, Etude House also sent their new Honey Cera skincare line. The line boasts the use of honey to moisturize, ceramides to heal and repair the skin barrier so as to retain moisture, and immortelle flower essence to firm. The trial set includes a toner, emulsion, eye serum, and a cream.

Now, Korea's winter is a bit dry (not as dry as Calgary's, but definitely dry enough to feel and see a difference in my skin). Not only that, but the dermatologist put me on a super low dose of accutane again as he thought my topical retinoid was too irritating. So basically, I have dry skin, with a compromised moisture barrier. The Honey Cera line should, in theory be perfect for me.

And, on it's own, it almost is. With a few tweaks, it definitely works for my dry, dehydrated winter skin. Add some moisturizing serums, to the mix, and my skin feels comfortable all day.

The toner is quite watery, and to be honest, doesn't feel that moisturizing compared to the Hada Labo lotion. Now, that's not to say it isn't moisturizing. After a shower, my skin usually feels tight quite quickly. Apply the toner, and that tightness disappears and doesn't return for a couple of hours.

Glycerin is the second ingredient, explaining the immediate relief upon application. As you may know, glycerin is a humectant and helps to draw water into the skin, so it will also help dehydrated skin quite a bit. The formula also boasts honey, royal jelly, and hyaluronic acid (all hydrating ingredients). Ceramide 3 is also quite high up on the list of ingredients, so it's definitely a good pick to help strengthen the moisture barrier. It does contain alcohol, but it's so low on the ingredient list, it doesn't bother me at all. It's $19 US on etudehouse.com. I'll definitely be picking this one up when I'm finished with my current toner.

The emulsion is another great product from this line up, and I credit this as the reason my skin stays comfortable for a longer period of time compared to my regular routine. While all the great ingredients (honey, ceramide, royal jelly, and various plant extracts) are lower on the ingredient list compared to the toner, glycerin is still high up, as are fatty alcohols. The formula is quite... sticky? I don't know how to describe it, but if you remember how snail creams used to boast about being super stringy, this is the same, minus the snail. Once you pat it on and it absorbs (quite quickly), it doesn't feel like there's anything on  your face. I normally don't use emulsions as I'm lazy, and use a heavy cream instead. However, the added step has definitely made a difference. The emulsion and cream from this line don't feel too heavy together, and I'm curious to see how well it pairs with my regular cream (currently the Guerrison 9 Horse Oil Cream). It's the same price as the toner.

The Honey Cera cream is a heavier cream, without feeling heavy. I'd say it compares quite well to my Belif Moisturizing Bomb. Slightly less moisturizing and slightly heavier feeling, but at nearly half the price, it's a good substitute (I use the same amount as I did with the Belif, a good finger full). This is full of more occlusive emollients including fatty alcohols and jojoba esters to help seal all the moisture from your previous steps in. It's really basic, but it does the job, which is all I need in a cream. It's $24 US.

Lastly, the trial set includes the firming eye serum. It's a super lightweight gel that sinks in quickly and leaves a bit of a shiny finish. It helps to hydrate my under eye area (which is super dry right now). I have noticed a difference in the dehydration lines underneath my eyes. Minus the one I always have due to a lack of aegyo-sal, this got rid of the rest completely. Mind you, they really only show up if I'm not using proper eye care, so I don't know how well this serum would perform on more stubborn lines. The serum uses glycerin to hydrate, and niacinamide to help brighten and improve elasticity. The full-sized version also has a metal applicator tip, which is nice to help massage the serum in and reduce puffiness. To be honest, I normally just use whatever serums and moisturizers I use on the rest of my face around my eye area as well, but this helps to reduce my concealer from sliding off (and my eyeliner from smudging and mascara from running, because heavy creams around the eyes will do that to your makeup). I think it's definitely more of a summer purchase for me, when smeary makeup is more of an issue. 

Overall, this is a great, basic line, especially for the price. I think anyone with combination to dry skin will be able to use this easily (if you have oily skin, maybe just use the emulsion, rather than both emulsion and cream). You'll even get a bit of anti-aging care, given the royal jelly (it protects against sun damage) and immortelle flower extract. I'll definitely be picking the toner and emulsion up from this line as finish the samples.

Belif True Cream Moisturizing Bomb Review

Introducing my new favourite cream for sensitive skin – Belif's True Cream Moisturizing Bomb. Belif says this cream coats your skin in comfort, and they weren't lying. Belif uses simple ingredients and says it's uses a 150 year old processing method to create it's skincare goodies. How true this is, I don't know, however it comes with rave reviews from Korean bloggers and has been featured in magazines and beauty shows. My Korean friend says it's a good line if you have sensitive skin – kind of like Korea's version of Avene or La Roche Posay.

This is a great occlusive cream, that while being heavy and efficiently sealing hydration in, feels fairly lightweight on the skin. Despite it's heavier texture, it dries matte on me, and doesn't feel greasy at all. It's comparable to the Innisfree Green Tea Seed Deep Cream, but doesn't feel quite as lightweight once applied. At first they feel the same, however, I feel that the Belif is better for dehydrated skin, whereas the Innisfree is best for true dry skin types, as it leaves a slight oily feeling after.

The Belif True Cream Moisturizing Bomb actually lessens my overnight oil production... the more I apply. When I first tried it out, I thought it would last forever, since it was heavy and I could get away with using a tiny baby pea-sized amount and feel properly moisturized. However I was a super shiny oil slick by the time I woke up. Okay, with this, a little goes a long way, right? Nope. One night I accidentally scooped too much out and decided to just go with it, as if I were applying a sleeping mask. And hey, normal, even slightly dry skin in the morning. A couple more nights of experimenting and now I'm using about two normal pea-sized amounts every night, in addition to my hydrating masks and essences. 

Notable ingredients include glycerin, which is a humectant, and macadamia oil, which serves as a moisturizer and occlusive. It also has a ton of fermented ingredients to help brighten the skin and allow the ingredients to be absorbed better, as well as comfrey leaf to help detoxify the skin.

The cream has a slight gel texture to it – it's not super thick and creamy, but not a gel either. There's a light citrus scent that's pleasant and not overwhelming at all. It spreads and absorbs easily, leaving behind a velvety finish with no shine. This is perfect for girls who love matte skin rather than the dewy look. 

I have noticed that as the weather get's dryer and dryer, I'm needing to use more of this cream. This may be because I'm not using a sheet mask everyday, or maybe it simply can't handle the change from summer to fall. Still, I find the Belif cream to be comforting to my dry skin, and does an adequate job at sealing everything in and keeping me relatively moisturized throughout the day.

I bought this for around $33 from 11 Street, but you can pick it up at Sephora for a reasonable price as well (because shipping from Korea will tack the extra on anyways)!

Pros:
Great for sensitive skin
Absorbs easily
Heals

Cons:
Unless you live by a Sephora that sells this, you'll have to order online

Mizon Hyaluronic Acid 100 Ampoule Review

As someone who constantly deals with dehydrated skin, I'm always on the lookout for good hydrating serums to add to my routine, especially ones that aren't going to break the bank (seriously, a very basic hyaluronic serum is at least $20/oz Cad). This is probably why I started to get into Asian cosmetics when I was 18 – everything was more reasonably priced, and they just seemed to work better.

The Mizon Hyaluronic Acid 100 Ampoule is a no frills serum. It only claims to provide lightweight, yet lasting hydration, and it performs quite well at that. Because of how sensitive my skin was at the time I purchased it (acne, over-exfoliation, rashy and eczema patches), I was looking for some key ingredients including ceramides (healing) and hyaluronic acid (hydrating).

Notable Ingredients

Hyaluronic Acid: This atttracts and maintains water in the skin. It can hold up to 1000 times its weight in water, making it a great ingredient for dehydrated and dry skin.

Copper Tripeptide-1: Increases collagen and elastin production and promotes skin regeneration

Cholesteral: Helps to restore and maintain the skin's barrier, maintaining normal skin function.

Ceramide 3: Helps to restore and maintain the skin's barrier.

Beta Glucan: Has anti-oxidant, wound healing and moisturizing properties.

Adenosine: An anti-aging ingredient that promotes collagen and elastin production, as well as having anti-inflammatory properties.

Full ingredients list here.

Performance

I bought this to provide extra hydration for my poor dehydrated skin around the same time as the Hada Labo Perfect Gel (it came in the mail about a week later). It too has hyaluronic acid and ceramides to help with my dehydrated skin, as well as anti-aging and healing properties to help with my acne and acne scarring. Mizon is known for providing quality products that are full of plant extracts (these often provide anti-inflammatory, brightening, and antioxidant properties), for a cheap price. I've actually used a few other products from them that I never got around to reviewing (namely their snail lines).

This particular serum is just a basic hydrating serum. It doesn't make any other claims, and for that, it performs its job well. Combined with the Hada Labo Perfect Gel, I almost had enough hydration to last a full day (assuming I was at home and not dealing with air conditioning). It's very lightweight and silky, absorbing easily. Seriously, my skin just drank this up and sighed happily, like it just had a sip of a well-made cup of tea. Like the Perfect Gel, I feel like this helped my skin to better retain moisture so that I wouldn't get that uncomfortable tight feeling, or overly oily (both signs of dehydrated skin) quite so soon in the day.

This isn't the best at "long lasting hydration" like it claims (okay it doesn't claim to be the best, but I've used better). Mind you, for half the price, I can't really complain either. It lasted about two months with twice a day usage (three quarters of a dropper each time).

For the price, I don't think you can get a better hydrating serum, especially if you're not in Korea. Feel free to correct me if I'm wrong, I'm always looking to try something new.

Pros

Cheap, unless you buy it from Urban Outfitters. I got mine for about $12/oz Cad with free shipping on Roseroseshop.com

Does what it claims

Not only hydrates, but as anti-aging ingredients as well (long-term benefits as well as short term!)

Cons

You'll need to wait in the mail for it (if you want it immediately, it's available at select Urban Outfitters stores for a very marked up price)

Hada Labo Perfect Gel Review

Hey guys, I'm back! It's been a nice hiatus, wrought with multiple skin rashes, acne, and allergies galore. But I look normal again, so here I am! So I've decided to write my first post about skincare (or maybe the first couple). A lot of you who know me in person know I'm the biggest geek about skincare, and it seems to have gotten worse (or better, if you like me rambling on about ingredients) after my latest little bought of skin mishaps. I've gotten a lot pickier with my skincare after having some sort of allergic reaction in March and April. I had a rash all over my hands and arms, as well as around my mouth. It took weeks to heal and multiple visits to the dermatologist, and it still likes to pop up now and again. For the record, I'm just super sensitive to alcohol in my skincare and prone to over-exfoliation.

Since my newfound love of ingredients lists and the beauty bloggers who post them, I've decided to follow suit in my reviews as well.

The Hada Labo Perfect Gel is one of the new products I tried that helped to get my skin back on track. According to Hada Labo, it's an all-in-one product, functioning as lotion, milk, cream, serum and mask. I personally use it as a lightweight moisturizer in place of the emulsion step in the "Asian skincare routine," and layer something slightly heavier over top. Other girls use it as their cream, or even a sleeping mask, so you can see that this truly is a multipurpose product.

Hada Labo is one of my favourite brands to use when my skin is acting up. The ingredients lists are always short, and focus on hyaluronic acid to help restore moisture to the skin. I'm prone to dehydrated skin due to my Retin A use, so Hada Labo is a lifesaver for me. I opted to get the Perfect Gel, as it not only had hyaluronic acid in it, but also urea (another great humectant) and glucosyl ceramide.

Notable Ingredients

Hyaluronic Acid: The perfect gel uses three types – hydrolyzed hyaluronic acid, sodium acetylated hyaluronate, and sodium hyaluronate. They're all humectants, meaning they draw water into the skin and hold onto it. These are all low molecular weight hyaluronic acid, so they can better penetrate the skin compared to high weight hyaluronic acid, which just sits on top.

Urea: Another humectant, but unlike high weight hyaluronic acid, it can penetrate the skin. It also has gentle exfoliating properties.

Squalane: This is actually a part of the sebum our skin produces, and production diminishes as we age. In cosmetics, it is usually derived from olives (but can also be from shark liver or sugar cane) and has moisturizing, antioxidant and antibacterial properties.

Glucosyl Ceramide: A glycolipid containing a fatty acid, glucose and sphingosine. Both orally and topically, it helps to restore and protect the skin barrier.

Hydrolyzed Collagen: Helps to add moisture and sooth the skin. Supposedly, it also helps to firm the skin, however multiple studies show that collagen particles are too large to penetrate the skin, and I don't know if hydrolyzed collagen makes a difference in penetrability.

The full ingredient list can be found on cosdna.

Performance

This is lightweight gel that absorbs into the skin fairly easily. I like to rub about a small grape sized amount in my fingers, and then spread it on my face, patting for a minute or until it's fully absorbed. I didn't experience any sort of stickiness with this, however others reported feeling sticky after using it. My skin honestly just absorbs anything as long as it's not straight up oil. It does leave an awkwardly shiny finish to the skin though. Not glowy like a face mask, just... shiny.

When I first started using this, I was dealing with a weird mouth rash (probably the result of over-exfoliation from Retin A, and a weekend spent outdoors in cold Edmonton with no lipbalm). This helped to calm the rash down more than the Avene Skin Recovery Cream samples I had. It definitely stung (nothing too bad) in that area though, which I'm guessing is because of the urea content. It also didn't aggravate the bad acne flare up I was also having at the time, as well as shrinking the eczema patch on my cheek bones. (Seriously, do you know how hard it is to deal with acne flare ups at the same time as a weird rash, and an eczema flare up on the face too!?) For the record, I have since learned that Vaseline is actually the best thing for any skin irritations around my mouth (I used it over top of the Perfect Gel), as well as getting rid of eczema patches.

Using this left my skin sufficiently moisturized for a few hours (ie. no tight feeling for about two to three hours). As I continued to use it, my skin would feel moisturized for longer. In other words, continued use allowed my skin to heal and better retain moisture. It also provides an immediate plumping effect.

For me, this wasn't enough hydration, and I needed to add a slightly heavier cream, as well as a serum for my skin to feel comfortable the majority of the day (and only when I wasn't in air con). I would highly recommend this to oily, or more normal to combination skinned girls (or men), or for those living in a more humid climate. If you're living in a dry climate and/or are using dehydrating products such as tretinoin or benzoyl peroxide, you might need to layer this with something else, or use something heavier.

This lasted about three months with twice a day usage (using a small grape sized amount of product each time).

You can also buy it on drugstore.com for a reasonable price.

Pros

·      Reasonable price – it's usually $25-30 CAD.

·      Minimal ingredients list meaning less chance of causing a reaction for sensitive skin.

·      Lightweight, absorbed quickly, and plumps the skin

·      Multiple ways to use it

Cons

·      Difficult to find in stores. T&T carries a lot of the Hada Labo lines, but not this one. My friend actually gave me her extra one, and she had to order it from Rakuten. Ebay also has it for a reasonable price.

·      Not enough moisture for me, but YMMV

Innisfree Green Tea Seed Deep Cream Review

I've done a mini review of this before, but I wanted to give you guys something a bit more in depth, as I couldn't find too many reviews of this particular cream online when I went to buy it myself.

The Green Tea Seed Deep cream is one of many creams in the Innisfree Green Tea lineup. I bought it right after I finished a round of Accutane, and I must say, this definitely helped to heal my skin not only from the drug use, but also during the dry winter we had. While I was searching for my next cream to try, there were two things that convinced me to buy this particular one, which is much heavier than the gels I normally use – a run through cosdna did not bring up any comedogenic ingredients in the first half of the ingredient list (it was only cetearyl alcohol, which is not an issue for me, but others find it can cause breakouts), and this had a rep for being a heavy duty moisturizer.

The texture is that of a light balm, which easily softens with the heat of your fingers. My preferred method to apply it is to rub a bit between my fingers, and then pat/rub it into my face. Even without warming it up, the cream spread easily on my face though. It smells quite floral, but after a day or two of using it, I barely noticed the heavier scent.

This cream is amazing at moisturizing, and I would definitely recommend it for any dry skinned person, or anyone living in a dry climate. While I don't think this would cause any breakouts for oily skinned people, they may find themselves looking shiny throughout the day. While this helped with my lack of oil due to Accutane and Retin A, this did not help with my dehydrated skin (my skin lacks water, but is normally able to produce oil, so I tend to peel and flake, while also looking like an oil slick), and another serum or moisturizer containing humectants is needed (I personally find sheet masks to be the best at treating dehydrated skin). For those of us with combination, oily, and/or dehydrated skin, this cream is best used to seal all of our serums in so that the hydration won't escape our skin.

Not only is the Green Tea Seed Deep cream great for dryer skin, it's great for sensitive skin! I definitely attribute decreased sensitivity with this cream. Normally, I'm red and peeling from Retin A use, and on occasion other skincare will sting when I put it on – signs of a damaged moisture barrier. The Green Tea Seed Deep cream definitely seemed to help heal and strengthen my moisture barrier. I will either apply the Retin A after all my serums and a facial oil, and then apply the Green Tea Seed Deep cream after the it, or I'll mix a pea sized amount of the Retin A with a pea sized amount of the cream (I think this is the most gentle way of apply the Retin A). Voila,  little to no skin irritation or peeling, and super glowy skin! I can even use a salicylic acid spot treatment without any stinging or redness when I use the Retin A and cream in this way.

I have since run out of the cream this week (hence the bad swatches), and my skin had a minor freak out (which is awesome, because I also managed to burn my lip with the Retin A after I ran out of this cream, so now it's like freakout x two, so you know, I'm avoiding the camera).

As I've mentioned before, I'm a big fan of the many skincare and beauty brands owned by Amore Pacific, and Innisfree is no different. The products are well formulated, never seem to cause breakouts, and they work. Innisfree's skincare is a brand I would recommend for those in their early 20s or those who don't want to spend a lot on a product that will give them results.

Pros:

Great at moisturizing

Does not have comedogenic or irritating ingredients

Reasonably priced

Cons:

Does not help dehydrated skin

Need to buy it online (I bought mine during the Honestskin sale)

Winter Skin Saviors

It's winter and you know what that means. Dry, irritated and possibly wind burnt skin from days skiing and hiking in the mountains.

With the change of seasons, a change in skincare is called for. Our skin condition changes given the weather, and in the winter, we're more prone to dryness, dehydration, and irritation – especially if you're living in a winter desert (hey Calgary). 

This winter, I bought a few new products, and returned to a few old goodies lying around in my cabinets unused that are perfect for the winter.

FACE BALMS

Avibon - The French beauty cult classic. This is thick, ointment like... cream? Balm? I dunno, but it's thick and feels like vaseline. It's chalk full of vitamin A (probably the most you can get in a product without going full retinoid), and moisturizing oils to fend off the dryness vitamin A likes to cause. And given it's thick texture, it's the perfect overnight mask when you're feeling particularly dry, or even just a bit wind burnt. I love it when my skin is irritated from too many drying products in the winter, but I don't use it everyday. 

You will need to warm it up in your hands a bit before smoothing it on your face, or else you'll find it impossible to spread. The thick texture feels like it might be a bit pore clogging (especially if you're oily and prone to clogged pores like moi) and I find little whiteheads after a few days of continuously using this. This is most likely a result from the vitamin A though, which can really purge your skin of all the gunk, and then those breakouts will stop. I'm too scared to find out though. Don't let me scare

 you though, as it truly is a great mask once a week!

Skinfood Avacodo Rich Eye Balm - Not a skin balm, as this is meant specifically for the eye area, but I'm putting in the same category. This stuff is nearly solid, but easily softens up to a spreadable texture when you rub it between your fingers. This is great for prepping my eyes for concealer in the winter, and it keeps things hydrated and thus, not cakey. Oh, and it doesn't cause creasing, so really, it's quite brilliant.

Innisfree Green Tea Deep Cream - This isn't quite a balm, but definitely thicker than any cream I've tried before, and is a part of my daily winter arsenal. This cream works best if you melt it a bit in your hands first, and then spread and pat into your face. Perfect for both the morning and night, this gives a wonderfully dewy look, but won't make you greasy. According to Innisfree, this cream helps your skin to retain moisture by improving your skin's moisture barrier. 

FACIAL OIL

Boscia Tsubaki Beauty Oil - My favourite facial oil that I've tried, this is lightweight, but highly moisturizing. It's great to use in it's own as a daytime moisturizer, to add extra moisture to your regular cream when you need, or layer on top of your creams and serums to seal everything in. I use three or four drops when I'm using it on it's own, and two or three to mix into my creams.

MASKS

Laneige Water Sleeping Pack - The tried and true, and the love of many a beauty blogger. This is a lightweight gel, that absorbs easily into the skin to supply much needed water to dehydrated skin. Personally, this isn't enough in the winter, so I add a drop or two of facial oil into it before applying. Also, I use a hefty portion, about a grape size, but hey, I wake up to dewy skin in the morning, so it's totally worth it, even if I use the entire container within a month. You can read the full review here.

LIPS

EOS Lip Balm - Another cult classic, this spherical lip balm is just too cute to not want to try. I originally purchased the EOS lip balms a year a go, and I was utterly unimpressed. I recently tried it again when my favourite Nivea was out of stock one day, and my mind was blown. The formula has definitely changed, and is no longer overly waxy. Instead it's moisturizing, and almost a tad oily – perfect for the winter. I stocked up at Costco, and now have about ten of these babies sitting on my counter. If you weren't impressed when they first came out, you might want to give them a second chance!

Etude House Baby Choux Mint Base Review

Hello all! I'm back with a bunch of beauty reviews for you as that's where my money seemed to go for the month of November! This time I'll be reviewing the Etude House Baby Choux Base in mint.

I dabbed a bit of red lipstick and applied the baby choux base on the top half. You can see the difference between where I left the lipstick alone, and where I covered it with the base here. The redness isn't completely gone, but it's blurred to blend into my skin.

Etude House says this is a makeup base to correct skin tone and create a smooth, powdery complexion. It comes in three colours, each with a different purpose – peach to correct sallow skin, berry to brighten, and mint to even out redness. It contains moisturizing properties, as well as SPF 33 PA++, meaning you're getting some pretty good UVA and UVB protection if anything.

As you can see, the base has a fluid texture making it easy to spread and blend out with either your fingers or a sponge. It blurs redness really well. Like... amazingly well. I would definitely recommend this is your suffer from red skin or rosacea. 

This doesn't offer any sort of real coverage, but you wouldn't want it to anyways. Apply too much, and you'll find yourself a pasty ghost! While this doesn't cover my more prominent acne scars (which are more of a purple tone rather than pink or red), this is excellent in covering the redness of acne, as well as reducing how red my face becomes due to the dry weather. I even used it to get rid of the redness around a stye I had, with no irritation and only good results! It also works to fill in wrinkles, pores, and the shallow acne scars I have.

I prefer to tap this into my skin with my fingers rather than rubbing it in like I would a silicon primer. This has a slot of slip and a powdery texture, just like traditional western primers, but feels a lot lighter on my skin. However, it doesn't do anything to increase the lasting power of my makeup. For reference, I only use a small amount – about half a pea size. I took a tip from Korean beauty blogger Pony, and apply it only to the areas on my face that have a tendency to get red – my cheeks, and around my nose – versus all over. The red areas blend into my natural skin tone this way, without making the normal areas overly pasty, meaning I don't need to use foundation after if I don't want.

This hasn't broken me out, clogged my pores, or given me any adverse reactions despite my acne-prone skin. However, it does have a light floral scent, so if you're sensitive to fragrance, you might want to stay away.

You can buy the baby choux base in the tube, or in the ever popular cushion form. I paid about $10 for mine from Beautynetkorea.

Pros

Amazing at covering redness
Fills in pores, and shallow wrinkles and scars
Not irritating

Cons
Some might not like the added fragrance
Need to buy online