Tony Moly Perfect Lips Shocking Lip: Red - Review!

As I say over and over again on this blog, my true weakness is lip products. Lipsticks to me don't require too much skill in application and I can always count on a bright pop of color to elevate my mood. If you know me–I'm looking at you Malucent Makeup–you know that my ultimate kryptonite is a red lipstick. I have a million reds, but I always, always want more.

TLDR: I like it! The longevity is pretty good. I needed a reapplication after eating a spaghetti bolognese lunch, but other than that I was impressed with the staying power. It's a deep red that makes my teeth whiter and I like the consistency of the formula. It's not drying, but it's not moisturizing either.  It also smells like a fruit roll up. 

The Tony Moly Shocking Lip was pointed out to me by the sales associate when I asked about her favorite item in the store. She told me that the lip stain was new and that you had to be very careful during application, because it stains and sets. If you mess up or go outside your lip line, you're done. I was totally sold when I saw a giant cardboard cutout of Tony Moly spokeswoman HyunA rocking her signature red lip using this product.

This was the most expensive of all the lip products I walked away with. For $22, you get 7 grams of product in a large container. The packaging is pretty big, so you won't easily be able to slip this into your clutch if you're going out, but you don't need to worry too much about re-application. What the sales associate said was totally true.

This lipstain has a a traditional doe-foot applicator and is very easy to apply. Just to reiterate, be careful during application and feel free to use a lip brush for even more precision.

Nude

The consistency of the lipstain is somewhere between a lip lacquer and a water stain, but to me it most resembles a gel. This might actually be my favorite red lip product at the moment, not only because of it's longevity, but also because it stains a deep red and has a demi-matte finish. It also smells really fruity and tasty–think fruit roll ups–even though I'm 1000% sure you're not supposed to eat it.

Freshly Applied

It's not as drying as traditional lip stains, but it's certainly not moisturizing either.

End of Day 

I purposefully didn't reapply the lipstain just to see how long it would last and I think it did pretty well! Even though it looks a little patchy, my lips are still colored. Also, if you layer your lipstain the longevity goes way up.

Just to do a true test of longevity, I applied one swipe of this lipstain before I went to work (at 7:30am) and took pictures throughout the day to see the wear. The last photo I took was at 6:30pm when I got home. I applied lip balm to make sure that my lips would stay hydrated, and I think that negatively affected the staying power of the stain.

When I got to work I got my usual cup of water and I noticed some transfer on the rim. My top lip also tinted the water pink.

You can definitely see in the last two photos that my lips are chapped and dry. I could have probably gone with a quick reapplication after lunch, but it still seemed to hold up pretty ok. Without the lipbalm, I think it would have lasted a little better.

I also like this stain because you can layer it pretty well and use it to do the "gradient lip" that's so popular in Korea.

Overall, I like the formulation. It stays on pretty well, it smells good and comes in three additional colors: Pink Shocking, Ruby Shocking and Orange Shocking. Although it is a little pricey, I may have to pick up another one of these.

You can buy it here (non-referral): http://en.koreadepart.com/item/1426746265/tony-moly-shocking-lip-perfect-lips

Thanks for reading and also thank you to Synthia Maramis for requesting this review! I hope it was helpful!

Zara Basic Top and Club Monaco Skirt OOTD

I don't know where other bloggers find beautiful urban areas that are completely devoid of people. I feel like every time I want to take an OOTD I always feel that flush of embarrassment when other people are watching. However, I wore this outfit to go on a date with Boyfriend to the Harvard Art Museums. So it was a good excuse to act like tourists and take photos all over the Harvard Yard. 

I love black skirts, I think they're a versatile and staple piece to anyone's wardrobe and I treat buying black skirts like my second job. I saw this one for sale at Club Monaco (Who's surprised at all that I shop there) and I knew I had to grab it. I felt the fit was very flattering and the texture of the skirt makes it able to break up monochrome outfits and also double as an interesting color-blocking piece.

I paired this guy with a Zara Basic top, the Talbots Peggy sandals that have been glued to my feet all summer, and my Chanel Purse. I never take it out, but I thought I would this time. 

Thanks for reading!

Tony Moly Angel Glow Ring Hair Mask - Review!

So when my sister and I walked into Tony Moly, the first thing we saw was their mask stand. I think because everyone is obsessed with Tony Moly facemasks that staff was hardpressed to constantly refill their mask stand. It seemed like they were out of a lot of the "regular" face masks and had placed some hairmasks as place holders in their mask stand. My sister and I gravitated towards this particular hair mask because of the cute wing design and the "Two-Step" Process of the hair treatment and hair cap.

It retails in store for: $6, but they currently don't have it stocked on their site. I've placed an alternative purchase link here to TonyMoly's Amazon Store. Full disclosure, this link is not a referral link.

Here are the ingredients for those of you that are curious, but the instructions are pretty similar to any other hair mask or over the counter deep conditioning hair treatment. Shower, shampoo and condition, towel off and apply the essence!

So this is my natural hair to begin with. I have a Korean "digital perm" on the ends, but other than that my hair is pretty much un-touched. I don't like to blow dry my hair and expose it to the excess heat, so I let it air dry every night. That being said, my hair is still a little crispy on the ends and could use some loving.

So I popped into the shower! After towel drying and taking all the excess water out of my hair, I ripped open the first little pouch on the tip of the "Angel Wing."

The essence was a thick cream and it didn't have too strong a smell. It just smelled "clean" and the consistency reminded me of Macadamia Professional brand hair masks. The amount in the pack was just enough to cover my hair, but I did put more on the ends and focused less on my scalp area.

As I was applying the cream to my hair, I noticed that it had little yellow micro-beads of essence further embedded in the cream. As I applied them to my hair, they melted right away. You don't have to worry about putting the cream on and leaving the beads and their nourishing essence un-popped in your hair.

You guys get to see my ugly "I'm doing stuff with my hair" shirt. 

Overall the application was very easy albeit a little messy as all hair things are.

I was actually a little disappointed when it came to "Step 2." My sister and I purchased this pack because we thought we would get "double" the amount of hair essence with the essence pouch and an essence soaked "hair mask." When I opened the main body of the angel wing, I pulled out a dry, thin, and flaccid looking shower cap with no essence to be seen.

You guys also get to see my icky makeup-less face! 

I can understand the benefit of covering up your hair to lock in all that moisture, but this "Angel Glow Ring Hair Mask" was slightly more expensive than the other essence soaked hair mask and I felt a little bit let down. I do have a lot of hair, but it wasn't difficult to fit it all into this shower cap. 

After you shove all your hair into your shower cap, the instructions say to massage your head for an undisclosed amount of time.

Having no patience and being a little lazy, I massaged my hair enough to make sure that the product was being evenly distributed, but I essentially let it sit for the 20 minutes after that. During the waiting period I noticed that my hands, which I hadn't rinsed off from Step 1, were burning uncontrollably. There was a stinging sensation all along my palms and fingers and that didn't go away even when I washed my hands with soap and water. Obviously the sensation faded by the end of the 20 minutes, but it made me wonder what was going on in my hair and on my hands.

After the twenty minutes, I popped back into the shower and rinsed the treatment out. Here's how my hair looks post treatment and rinse.

I let my hair air dry overnight and I slept on it, so we'll time warp to this after photo. Yes, I did wear essentially the same outfit two days in a row, but I did change the top!

The overall results were tangible. I felt a difference in my hair, it was definitely smoother, softer and shinier. When I asked the boyfriend if he noticed anything different, he said that my hair was shinier. So the "Angel Glow Ring Hair Mask" definitely stands up to its name in that respect.

My permed curls did fall out a little bit, but I think that's because my hair got a little softer and wasn't able to hold the curl as well.

Two days later, my hair still feels softer, but it has lost some of that shine. My curls have bounced back, but I wouldn't say this made a life changing difference to my hair. I think I'd purchase it again for fun, but I wouldn't put this product into my normal routine of hair care. Next time, I'll try to blow dry and see if my curls hold up better.

Overall, I'm neutral about this product, but I can see myself buying it again. And I can also see myself washing my hands off immediately after applying "Step 1."

I hope this helps!