dear Klairs Illuminating Supple Blemish Cream SPF40, PA+++

*DISCLAIMER - Item(s) sent by 08liter in exchange for an honest review.  I am not being financially compensated for this review.  All words and opinions are 100% my own.*

As I am becoming more active about my skincare routine, I researched and fell hard for Korean beauty.  Yup, officially obsessed with kbeauty now, and though I am still a newb, I have found some products I already love and some that I am super excited to try.  One of those products is a tried and true BB Cream.  A BB Cream, or blemish balm, is a workhorse, kind of does it all products.  It does everything from color correction, wrinkle care, brightens, whitens, sun care, pore care, oil control...the list goes on and on.  Here in the states, many "bb creams" are released, but none come close to asian bb creams.

Thanks to 08liter.com I had the chance to try a lovely bb by the name of dear Klairs Illuminating Supple Blemish Cream SPF 40, PA+++.

Klairs Illuminating Supple Blemish Cream

Here we have dear Klairs Illuminating Supple Blemish Cream!  Here are its particulars...

+Plastic Tube with screw top
+Contains 40ml of cream product
+Retails anywhere from $18 - 22 USD.  Can be found at known outlets like Amazon, wishtrend, etc.
+Contains SPF 40, PA+++
+Claims - to whiten, provides wrinkle care and sebum control

Let's just get this out of the way first....western BB creams have NOTHING on its Asian counterparts. What we get here are nothing more than glorified tinted moisturizers.  From high end to drug store, I have yet to find one that promises or delivers like I heard eastern BB creams can.

Since this experience was my first with what I deemed a legit BB cream, I had no idea what to expect.  Unfortunately, a few weeks before I received this, I had gotten a tan from helping a friend move.  And boy did I tan.  Let's just say if you know you are going to be outdoors moving with no sun cover, don't buy new foundations just days before :/.

Here we have Klairs Illuminating Supple Blemish Cream, one heavy swatch and one blended.  This was taken with no flash, under kitchen/day lights.

Here is the BB cream taken with flash photography under the same kitchen/day lights.







Experience:
* Scent -  a light, pleasant combo of makeup and skincare, fades a few minutes after application.  I think even those that do not like scented products would not mind this.
* Texture - lightweight in texture, but with enough body to spread evenly.  Once blended, skin feels tacky for a few minutes.
* Application - melts nicely into the skin.  Even when applied in 2 or 3 layers (for discoloration), it layered nicely over itself and over my current concealer.  Once on, product remains tacky for a few moments.  Does dry down to a skin feel, but dewy appearance.
* Wear - This wore lovely on the skin, no primer, but I did set with a powder. 6 hours had lapsed before I noticed any immediate need to blot/reapply powder.  Skin feels soft throughout the day.  I did notice that this wore rather thickly in my hairline and stuck around that way for a while.  Brush application there seemed best for avoiding that.
* Color - As far as I know, this only comes in one shade.  Had I been the color I usually am around winter, this would have been a good match.  I did notice a heavy white cast, due to the sun protection, and also on the face, this made me look a bit grey.  It was nothing a bit of correcting with powder couldn't fix.

pre application

post application

Have been loving the feel and look of my skin during this trial with Klairs.  Look forward to seeing my skin in a few weeks and also getting my hands on some more Klairs products!

Enjoy, D

Summertime Beauty Giveaway

Yup, it is that time again...Giveaway time!  And what for?  The past 6 months were huge for me.  In between full time class load at school, a death in the family and overall general craziness, life became overwhelming.  And many of you stuck around to see and give love to the few posts I was able to muster.  For that, I cannot thank you enough.  So, as a token of my gratitude, here are two prize packs that are available for you guys!  Yup, that means 2 lucky winners!  Follow the widget below to enter!  Because its summertime and who doesn't need some new pretties?  Good luck all!

PRIZE PACK 1:
* TonyMoly Im Real Lemon Brightening Mask
* Aurora Gel Effect nail polish in 4 Alarm Fire
* Pacifica shadow single in Treasure
* Wet n Wild Fergie Collection lipstick in Fergie Daily

PRIZE PACK 2:
* TonyMoly Im Real Lemon Brightening Mask
* Aurora Gel Effect nail polish in Old School Pink
* Peony Shadow Trio
* Wet n Wild Fergie Collection lipstick in Saraghina


a Rafflecopter giveaway


Info:
giveaway available to US residents only.  Starts 7/15/2016 - 8/5/2016.  Winners will be chosen through random.org.  Emails used to contact winners, they will never be sold.  If under 18, please get your parents permission.  Winner will be notified over various social media channels.  IF winner does not claim prize, another will be chosen.

About Face - the basic ins and outs of my skin

So...before we even start, there will be faces of my naked skin, no filters, no creams, potions or lotions.  Just freshly washed skin.

I've wanted to do this post for such a long time.  First, because I am deep in the throws of a skincare obsession that shows no signs of waning.  And secondly, because I review makeup, I wear it and I need to get better about posting FOTD's, but it would be nice to show you what I am working with.  I am hoping that this goes far in helping someone that may share some similarities with me.

Alright, here we go...

Tanned against my will, freshly washed face, no product

So here is my mugshot.  I recently helped a friend move coming on a week now.  I was much paler before this and now am toasty brown.  Anymore sun and I will definitely be hitting brownie status.  But here we are...lets go down the list of exactly what nature is throwing my way!

*dark circles (horrible sleep schedule that I keep)
*hyperpigmentation (Im sure getting sun the other day didnt help, but I've been getting kind of impatient with pimples and bumps recently, so I have been picking more than I usually do)
*fine lines under the eyes (yup, its starting...but hey, I laugh and smile, sue me.  It shows!)
*texture (bumps all over the place!  I try to keep this in check and though I won some battles, I have not won the war yet :( )
*dryness - another war I have not won yet...moisturizers galore and exfoliation to boot and I have yet to find something that will kill the dryness monster altogether!
*oiliness - don't get me started.  Your typical combo-oily gal, T-zone oily poster child...here I am!

Issues, I haz them

Let's start from the beginning...as a teenager, I was lucky enough (thanks mom and dad) that I did not have a traumatic experience with teenage acne.  Mom started me on Noxema cream from a very early age, that and okay, yeah, I let her pick my face.  I attribute the condition of my skin then to those two things.  Slightly oily in the tzone, normal everywhere else, I had no trouble with any makeup or skincare I decided to add to my routine.  I state confidently that I had normal, not in the slightest sensitive, great skin.  This followed throughout my 20's, with hormonal acne taking a bigger bite out of my face, but nothing I could not handle.  Then came my late 20's to early 30's....and here is where it got ... weird.

Texture and peach fuzz galore!

In my 30's, my skin changed quite a bit.  Gone were the days where I could slather whatever lotion or foundation I could get my hands on and not experience any changes with my skin.  I started to experience sensitivities that I had not in my younger years.  Redness around my nose, dry patches on cheeks, forehead, and corners of mouth, hyperpigmentation, texture that I could not exfoliate off, increased pore size, fine lines (which I expected though).  I am sure there are a myriad of other details but hey, I'm sensitive :p.

I am hoping this gives you a good look into my specific makeup and helps you and I track what future skincare works or doesn't.  You may have my issues, maybe more, maybe less, but let's see if we can't get to a much more improved state together!  I decided to take a break from a lot of the previous skincare I was using to cleanse my skin and also to introduce new products.

You guys will see all the new things I am obsessing over soon :)

Let's start this journey...shall we?

xo, D