Cherry Loves from Starbucks!

I haven been missing, just pretty busy with a brand new year. I just had to write this post cos I wanted to declare that it's officially Spring! Now with the super erratic weather across the globe and I know that it's still snowing in my favourite country - it's quite a late Spring we can experience in 2014. 

Oh yes, the song of the day is 안녕 by Hyorin, and it's from the soundtrack of "From the Stars" Korean Drama. I haven caught the drama.

Anyways, the main focus of this post is Spring. 

Say Spring and what will come to your mind? 

For me, it has to be pretty sakuras in pink and glorious sunshine shining through with some cool breeze.

To me, Sakuras are the best representation of Spring, and there is no other place in the world than in Japan to experience its beauty in full glory. I've just randomly googled for Sakura, and above are just some of the many images which appeared. Pretty isn't it? 

Just a side note, here is the schedule for Sakura Viewing (first bloom) 2014 from JNTO:

- Sapporo: 5 May 2014

- Aomori: 25 April 2014

- Niigata: 9 April 2014

- Kanazawa: 3 April 2014

- Hiroshima: 25 March 2014

- Sendai: 12 April 2014

- Fukuoka: 22 March 2014

- Kyoto: 28 March 2014

- Tokyo: 29 March 2014

- Shizuoka: 25 March 2014

- Nagoya: 26 March 2014

- Matsuyama: 24 March 2014

- Osaka: 28 March 2014

- Kagoshima: 24 March 2014

- Nagasaki: 22 March 2014

- Naha: 15 January 2014

To kick start the Bloom of Sakura, Starbucks Japan has introduced a series of BEAUTIFUL merchandise with the Sakura motifs. 

Spot an aeroplane in the above image? This stainless stell bottle is a limited design sold on board ANA. 

The pink petals are designed to be like pink clouds whereby the ANA plane soars above.

It's in all these littlest things that made me go gaga over Japanese products. I really wished I was in Japan now. 

And this is the entire range of merchandise in pink!

And not forgetting the Sakura Chocolate with Strawberry Flavoured topping:

Super pretty cherry flavoured Sakura chiffon cake:

And not forgetting the canvas Earth Mini Tote Bag:

SOOOOOOOOOOOOO PRETTY RIGHT! They even have a small bag charm (that's so super Japanese) in Sakura prints. Omg, I really wished I could travel there now.

In the neighboring country to Japan, South Korea, they too have pretty merchandises from Starbucks.

This tumbler is from the Rose of Sharon series. This is so pretty, that I just googled to see if I could get it online.

The Rose of Sharon Starbucks card

Iced Cherry Blossom White Chocolate drink

Cherry Blossom Latte, and even the holder is in lovely pink!

The White and Pink Tart

Aren't the tumblers pretty! 

Not forgetting out neighbours from HongKong:

They have their version of pretty flowers blooming!

Last but not least, these Sakura designed merchandise have arrived at our sunny island!

Though sharing the same design as the HongKong versions, I couldn't resist my temptation and bought 2 tumblers.

Spring has never been so pink and pretty before!

Review: The Faceshop CC

It's been some time since I did a review. But I feel that urge to review the following product as I really think that it's a well-made product. Today's review is about the famous CC Cream, also known as Colour Control/Correcting Cream. This cream is a more refined version of the Blemish Balm (also known as the BB Cream).

Both BB and CC creams were developed in Korea, with the former being used as an after-surgery cream to soothe the skin. CC Cream was developed to retain all benefits of the BB Cream, and yet reducing the appearance of skin redness and sallowness. Both creams act as UV protection or sunscreens and have many other skincare properties such as, anti-aging, hydration, blemish prevention etc. 

**Disclaimer: All reviews are done at my own expenses and what I feel is most benefiting to myself.

This following product has made it into my holy grail and I have just finished using my first tub.

This is the Face IT Smart Capsule Colour Control Cream from The Faceshop! The ironic thing is that I didn't get this in Korea during my Korea trip, but only gotten my hands on this during my KL work trip. Sigh, but better late then never. The promoter at the KL shop was pretty nice. She explained to me, very detailed, what this tub will do to my face. 

Features

I was actually looking at the Face IT Aura Colour Control Cream, but she told me that this tub has more coverage. The other properties are: brightening, hydrating, anti-wrinkle and it doesn't clog pores. The last point got me cos I have many little black heads over my pores, and the last thing I've ever wanted is something heavier than my BB Cream to clog up more pores. Which also means, this tub is lighter on application yet provide sufficient coverage. 

As we all know it, the weather in Singapore is humid and hot. Which also means, no matter how fresh you try to keep your makeup on, it will oxidize and turn dark as the time passes, and I have this issue with compact powders and BB creams. I tend to pile up with more powder when my face turns oily but it's a huge no-no as your face will look cakey. However, another interesting feature of this cream is that it has this darkening-proof formula, which simply to say, my makeup will be maintained morning-fresh and bright throughout the day! I've tried and tester, and the most I have to do when I'm in outdoors the whole day, is just to dab away the oil but my face still remains fresh. Woohoo, no more oxidization! That's such a winner, isn't it?

Technology

Strange to find a technology segment in a skincare review? As we all know it, the Koreans are pretty innovative when it comes to skincare, especially when they are well-known as the country to go to for cosmetics surgery. Well, this CC Cream has a Smart Tone Technology, which means that the yellow, black and red pigments of the Smart Capsule changes colour from white to yellow as they are blended together on the skin, and they are able to find the most ideal complexion shade. I always find myself very amazed with this technology. The cream looks perfectly creamy on my fingers, but upon application onto my face, it changes to blend nicely on my skin. Flawless, natural with a little glow, just like how I'd like it to be. =)

Application

I've read from somewhere that the SPF features in most skincare products are usually not sufficient, especially when it comes to Asian countries like Singapore. Thus, the first layer I'll apply after moisturizing, is the sunscreen! Sunscreens are important and I cannot further emphasize how important are sunscreens. Anyway, after the sunscreen layer, I'll half-press the top of the tub for a sufficient portion of cream to be out, before using both my middle and ring fingers to blend over my face. The first few swipes will see the cream "transforming" into a tone closer to my skin's, and if I want more coverage that day, I'll layer up with a few more swipes. The half-press portion is just nice for 2 layers on my face, and 1 layer over my neck. Do not forget to apply on your necks too, cos the skin on your neck is thinner than that of your face, and it's also better to protect it. 

Final Verdict

✓✓✓✓✓ -> Into my Holy Grail

I love the texture, the light scent, the medium coverage and of cos, the reasonable price.

The Face IT Smart Capsule Colour Control Cream can be found at all Face Shops around the region, and I think it's priced at SGD$54. You can get it slightly cheaper from Gmarket or even much cheaper if you make a visit to the Face Shop outlet in Korea.

Credits to The Face Shop