dearrivarie: February 2017

Hello world! I've been meaning to get this review up for a while but was just too lazy to get all the pictures and edits down. But today I'm finally sharing my thoughts on the Face Shop's Mono Pop Eyeshadow Palette in #01 Daily Muzi! I received this a gift from one of my best friends and I've been absolutely in love with it (so much so that I've been stalking Yesstyle for other eyeshadow palettes...it's a real problem...)

This eyeshadow palette is a cute collaboration with Kakao Talk which I believe is the Korean version of LINE (which I personally use). The packing is super cute with the Muzi's face both on the paper slip and plastic container.

When you open the palette, there's this cute plastic covering which prevents the eyeshadows from getting dirty. The design is so cute with all the Kakao character standing with their backs facing you (except for Muzi.) The palette also comes with a dual ended sponge applicator. Personally, I'm not a fan of sponge applicators in general so I've never used it, but it feels really nice, not like the cheap ones where the sponges come off super easily.

The palette itself is a pop of color with the bright yellow that just boosts my mood when I use it in the morning (perfect for 8ams when I'm half asleep). It comes with a huge mirror, making it super convenient to travel with as well. The top half of the palette can bend all the way down so the entire palette is flat, but for the sake of the picture I only pushed it down a bit.

As I said before, the palette comes with 8 eyeshadows in a range of different finishes. I had to do some research to make sure I was classifying them correctly but I came to the conclusion that there are four matte shadows, three satin shadows, and one shimmer shadow. All the shadows are incredibly pigmented and with such a wide range of colors, you have an endless amount of options from a simple everyday look to a smoky eye for a night out.

Here are the swatches and I apologize if the first three colors are a bit hard to see on my super pale skin. When I use this palette, I try to incorporate as many shadows as I can and I'll even use all eight sometimes.

To give a quick rundown of each color:

1) neutral cream - inner corner highlighting or setting your eyeshadow primer

2) light golden satin - center of the lids for some sparkle

3) warm matte coral - base color

4) golden brown satin - accent or define the lower lash line

5) dark matte brown - define or wing it for a softer eyeliner look

6) cool toned satin brown - accent color or another eyeliner shade

7) neutral medium brown - accent color

8) shimmery gold - center of the lids or on the aegyo sal (inner half of the lower lash line)

This palette essentially has all of my favorite colors for a perfect everyday look and I've honestly been so obsessed. I hope this review offers a decent overview of the palette and I apologize if I didn't explain any parts correctly. I'm better at reviewing books than makeup but I've got to start somewhere!

6:30 PM No Comments

Italy, 1943—Germany occupies much of the country, placing the Jewish population in grave danger during World War II.As children, Eva Rosselli and Angelo Bianco were raised like family but divided by circumstance and religion. As the years go by, the two find themselves falling in love. But the church calls to Angelo and, despite his deep feelings for Eva, he chooses the priesthood.Now, more than a decade later, Angelo is a Catholic priest and Eva is a woman with nowhere to turn. With the Gestapo closing in, Angelo hides Eva within the walls of a convent, where Eva discovers she is just one of many Jews being sheltered by the Catholic Church.But Eva can’t quietly hide, waiting for deliverance, while Angelo risks everything to keep her safe. With the world at war and so many in need, Angelo and Eva face trial after trial, choice after agonizing choice, until fate and fortune finally collide, leaving them with the most difficult decision of all.

Amy Harmon cannot write a bad book! I feel like I always start my reviews for her books with that sentence but it's true every time. Ever since I started reading her novels, each one has confirmed the fact that she's an incredibly gifted author with the ability to connect her readers to her characters.

If I'm not mistaken, this is her first historical fiction novel and I was so excited to find that it took place during WWII. Right from the start, we're introduced to Angelo as he is struggling to find his way back to Eva and that sets the tone for the entire story. My heart went through so many rollercoasters with this novel from the beautiful to heart wrenching scenes as we traveled through the story with Angelo and Eva.

From sand and ash, rebirth. From sand and ash, new life. With every song and with every prayer, withe very small rebellion, Eva felt reborn, renewed, and she bowed to press on. She vowed to push back. To make glass from the ashes. And that courage was a victory in itself.

At the beginning, I was unsure about how Amy Harmon was going to weave the story together with Angelo and Eva being from two completely different worlds. Despite growing up together, Angelo becomes a Catholic priest and Eva is a Jewish musician who is facing persecution. Throughout the story, we follow Angelo as he constantly struggles to figure out how to divide his heart between Eva and God while Eva has to find the willpower to stay alive. There's so many instances where there seems like they have nowhere to turn, but then Amy Harmon just injects these beautiful quotes of hope and perseverance and that just made the whole reading experience more meaningful.

“Love had not made them poor. Love had made them wealthy. In that moment, they were royalty, a king of fortune and a queen of destiny, embracing a tiny prince of peace.”

“Life is like a long note; it persists without variance, without wavering. There is no cessation in sound or pause in tempo. It continues on, and we must master it or it will master us.”

The novel offers a glimpse into WWII and I'm reminded of just how powerful novels written in this time can be. We're constantly reminded of the horror that have happened in the past and novels like this one affirms the pain that people have experienced but also highlights the beautiful strength that lies within ourselves. Eva and Angelo are just one example of countless numbers of fighters who have fought to stay true to what they believe in and it's honestly so inspiring and refreshing to be able to experience their lives through this book.

“We are at war. War has a way of stripping us of perspective. War is about life and death, and it paints everything in shades of now or never.”

From Sand and Ash is an absolute gem. It's beautifully written and has the power to move its readers and inspire the world. I'm once again blown away by Amy Harmon and if you haven't read this book you definitely need to because I promise you, your life will be completely transformed.

9:17 AM No Comments

8:00 AM No Comments

Hello world! I've got a Yesstyle Haul to share with you all today. Korean skincare products have essentially taken over the world and so many people are trying to achieve that beautiful youthful glow that many Korean celebrities have. A couple of my friends have been pretty on board with this trend as well so I've heard my fair share of skincare facts.

Personally, my version of skincare usually consisted of cleanser and moisturizer and that's pretty much it. I recently started using a Shiseido Balancing Water Lotion that my mom gave me and I've been happy with that simple routine. But I've finally caved and did some additional research on a couple of different skincare products and ended up placing an order on Yesstyle.

For those who don't know, and this post isn't sponsored, Yesstyle is an enormous online fashion and beauty retail that caters specifically to styles and products from Asia. I spend way too many hours window shopping on that site and have a wishlist bigger than my textbooks. You receive free shipping in the US on orders of $35 or above and shipping takes an average of 3-4 weeks. You can also collect Stylepoints which can place you in a specific VIP member group and you can get different discounts through that as well.

The products came in a small box and everything was bubble wrapped together. In terms of shipping, I placed the order around the second week of January so overall the package came pretty quickly.

The products I picked up were:

SecretKey - Snail Reparing Eyecream 30g ($8.64)

SecretKey - Witchhazel Pore Clear Toner 248ml ($11.26)

The Face Shop - Baby Leaf Green Tea Waterfall Serum 60 ml (13.88)

NatureRepublic - Bulgarian Rose Moisture Essence 35 ml (5.39)

Quick note, the prices I listed are the ones that I bought them for. I know for a fact that the NatureRepublic Essence was on a huge discount so the price might vary a bit.

I haven't gotten the chance to try these on my face yet as I got super excited when I opened the package and just set to take some photos and write this post up. I did try them on my hands and they feel so nice. The green tea serum and rose essence smell amazing as well.

I'll have an update post in the future reviewing these products so stay turned for that! Quick question to wrap things up, have you tried any Asian skincare products and what are your thoughts on the whole trend?