Beauty News: Kocostar Head-to-Toe Masks Launching in Sephora Singapore

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When we talk about sheet masks, the first thing we visualise is usually a white wet sheet on our face; but there is something more innovative than that....

Introducing a popular mask brand in South Korea - Kocostar! The unique brand concept where Kocostar takes care of your beauty needs at the comfort of your home, from head to toe. You will find masks for your hair, face, eyes, hands, feet and even fingers!

Slice Mask Sheet 

(Price: SGD 6.00 each)

The star collection of Kocostar has got to be the Slice Sheet Mask. Creatively designed into twelve pieces of fruit slices printed sheets in each pack, this allows users more targeted application onto the areas where their skin needs attention.

Currently, the Tomato, Watermelon, Cucumber and Lemon Slice Sheet Masks are available in all Sephora Singapore stores.

My skin concerns are more on the face, so that's where all my cute "fruit slices" will go to! (I have other masks targeted for other body areas - also by Kocostar!) But if you wanna make full use of Slice Sheet Mask, you may place flim sheets anywhere your body such as neck, arms, legs, etc. just like the girl below...

The mask I chose to try first is the Cucumber one because it is suppose to purify pores, de-puff, soothe & refreshes skin. My greasy & puffy face is screaming for help! Besides its hydrating properties, this Cucumber mask also contains Vitamin C.

MY FIRST IMPRESSIONS OF SLICE SHEET MASK

It's very fun to use! Not to mention if we compare to using real cut raw fruits/vegetables, this is a much more convenient and effective alternative. The moisture level undoubtedly will be way higher too. Despite being piece-by-piece film sheets, they didn't get overly messy due to excellent contact ability of the tencel fabric made from eucalyptus tree. The ink is harmless to the skin and won't leave any stains.

Apart from a high level of moisturization, I personally did not experienced the deep cleansing or de-puffing effects. Unsure if it is due to the gaps in between each film sheet, leading to uneven application? 

Product feels & smells refreshing with its light cucumber scent. Putting on the neck & décolleté seems like a smart move since there isn't yet a sheet mask in the beauty market that covers all the way below the neck.

That being said, I think I prefer to stick to my traditional fitted facial sheet mask after the novelty wears off for this!

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Hand Moisture Pack 

Foot Moisture Pack

Foot Peeling Pack

(Price: SGD 7.00 each)

  

Hand Moisture Pack and Foot Moisture Pack are moisturizing and soothing treatment masks that improve the condition of dehydrated hands & feet in 20 minutes. Ingredients such as Shea Butter and Safflower oil are present in these masks to replenish moisture as well as intense nourishment.

Yes, you can still operate your touch screen devices with the Hand Moisture Pack on!

Foot Peeling Pack is something more special:

An intense, soothing treatment of botanicals extracts to exfoliate and repair stressed feet while softening and smoothing the skin’s surface. Product claims that dead skin will come off your feet naturally after 3~4days. 

  Foot Peeling Pack ironically gave me a hard time for trying to tear it into two. #can'tpeelfornuts. 

Me enjoying some me-time with Hand/Foot Moisture Packs.

MY FIRST IMPRESSIONS 

Hand Moisture Pack and Foot Moisture Pack felt pretty pampering to the hands and feet. After 20 minutes, my hands and feet immediately look smoother, softer and brighter! Definitely something I will repurchase when I to complete my "home spa experience" or when they have been neglected for too long. 

TIP: Massage in excess essence for increased absorption. Also, remember to wipe off leftover grease from your soles before you start walking on the floor - it will get slippery!

I can't give a fair review for Foot Peeling Pack as the mask tore after the first 3 minutes because I was walking on the floor, stretching the poor dainty masks on my size 40 feet (to operate the self-timer camera. haha)! Therefore, consequently, I could not see any 'peeling' 3 - 4 days after. Obviously it had to do with me not leaving it on until its specified duration; or perhaps my feet didn't have that much dead skin to start with. Ahem.

To summarise, I am impressed with Kocostar as it offers a wide range of masks for every part of your body and for every skin type! I couldn't manage to finish trying all the masks that were sent to me yet, but I know I will enjoy most of them. In fact, I have been purchasing & using their Ggongji Hair Pack way before they evolved into a new packaging. 

 

The only hair mask I will ever wear to sleep on flights

Latest revamped hair masks packaging

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For more product information, hop over to http://www.kocostar.com/!

Kocostar Home Beauty Treatment Masks are available at SEPHORA SINGAPORE from 16 February 2017. Follow them on Instagram: @sephorasg and @kocostar for more updates.

 

SS Shiny Hair Curler Korea Review : Are those Qoo10 cheap hair curlers worth your time?

Ever thought of owning a hair gadget that can help you manage your flat, limp hair better (but at a more affordable price)? I suspect with the humidity levels in Singapore, half of you my lovely readers here will be answering a resounding "YES"!

We all dream of beautiful flowy tresses - some of us wished we look half as beautiful as those Korean actresses we see in drama with natural big waves or cute chic curls.

For example...

Song Hye Kyo

If you think Korean celebrities are all born with natural beautiful wavy locks, then I am sorry to burst your bubble - you're freaking wrong. Most if not all, of them have a personal hairstylist who takes care of their hair and style them into perfection every single time they go for a shoot.

As normal people, we probably don't have such luxury of a 24-hour personal human hairstylist on standby. The best alternative to this will be a good electronic hair gadget to assist us in this matter.

I have owned several straightening irons & hair curling tongs throughout my life of vanity. (Haha!) And in my opinion, a good hairstyler must be:

1. Easy to Use

2. Handy & Convenient (I travel a lot, and the last thing I need is something bulky to take up luggage space.)

3. Versatile in creating various hairstyles

4. Affordable or at least, value-for-money.

With these criteria in mind, I had never stopped my quest for the next better hairstyling tool... and I unexpectedly came across something interesting on Qoo.10 while shopping online for household items...

SS Shiny SMART QUEEN Hair Curler Korea 

(NEW Wireless 2017 Version)

My hand is there for you to have a rough gauge of the size of this hair curler. It measures about 27cm long and weighs 170g, which is pretty handy & tiny for my hands actually.

It comes in a box, a low quality white pouch (which I threw away upon receiving it), a charger and charging cable. The cable is just a normal cable that we use to charge your Samsung phones & tablets. The charger is two-pin and requires an international adapter for it to plug into our Singapore socket.

For more product information, please click HERE.

It has three selections for level of heat, as well as a battery level indicator. It claims to be made of gold diamond ceramic coating. Gold-in-colour yes, ceramic...yes, diamond, I have no idea. Seriously, it cost me merely a total of SGD 57.00 including shipping fees, so I don't expect to see real diamonds you know. 

Anyway, let us explore some of the hairstyles I successfully created with the gadget!

Sweet Typical Korean C-Curl Hairstyle

This takes about 15 minutes or less, and needs minimal skills (Just keep brushing your hair inwards). I was very thorough with the curling - I sectioned my hair into 4 levels and further divided them into few more handfuls before I started to curl each handful. 100% battery was used up to recreate this hairstyle.

Sexy Big Curls

Forget sexy. "Sexy" and Faith hardly roll together. 

This is my feeble attempt to curl my hair outwards to produce a more voluminous "big hair" kinda waves. I don't know how you feel about this hairstyle, but seriously, I don't like it enough. And to top it off, I spent 20 minutes of my life on something that didn't last beyond the 3rd hour.

Youthful College Girl Look

With my actual age wayyyy past college age, I feel a bit uneasy posing with a pink bear and wearing my hair in a ponytail. Nonetheless, I am happy to show you girls how this could work too, if... let's say, you're living in your university hall and want to impress your boyfriend who is visiting you at your room. I think he could find this look adorable & endearing. Ahem.

MY THOUGHTS

Jokes aside, I find this SS Shiny SMART QUEEN Hair Curler Korea a pretty cool invention because it is not exactly a hair curling tong, nor is it a straightening iron. It is a cordless hair brush with heat mode to make your hair brushing more effective. This can tame your frizzy tresses and it has the potential to inject volume into the crown of your hair, and it is likely to give you nice C-curls too, provided you know how to use it.

I wouldn't depend on it to create nice S-curls or big wavy hair. It is too much work to twist and turn and risk getting your hair entangled in the brush! And if you have longer hair, I highly recommend you to not try it at all because the battery power won't last till you finish your entire head of hair. 

PROS

• Travel-friendly size.
• Cordless spells convenience
• Pretty pink color. (Comes in chic blue colour too)
• Cheap! SGD51 before shipping only!
• User-friendly. There's only one button to operate!
• Can be used while charging and vice versa.
• Minimal hair damage if you religiously apply heat protector prior to curling.
• Reasonable quality at this price point. (Been a month since I bought it and intensively used it)

CONS

• Curls doesn't last beyond 3 hours. Under bad weather conditions, maybe less than 30 minutes.
• More effective on shorter hair.
• Long hair = high risk of entangled hair, which can result in hair loss.
• Only C-curls will work properly. A little challenging to create other hairstyles
• Short battery lifespan. One use = one charge (for long hair)
• Incompatible plug for use in Singapore. You need to separately purchase an international adapter.

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So, will I recommend this hair styling tool at all?

Yes, only to those with shoulder length or bob/lob hairstyles.  And also to jetsetters who wants a travel-friendly hair brush that can maintain your curls a little.

 My straight hair before using SS Shiny Hair Curler

 

C-curls I created on a flight 10 mins before aircraft landing

I think it's awesome to use on a flight, before you land into your destination country and want to look picture-perfect for photo-taking upon arrival at airport. It is a great complement to the bulky but professional (and probably high-end, expensive) curling tong or hair straightener you already owned.

However, if you're really picky about how your hair must look...and you're looking for a legit hair gadget that works under all conditions and boasts of high quality + good reviews, please consider a hairstyler from GlamPalm. 

Read more about my thoughts of Glampalm HERE.

TIP: To maximize the use of any electronic hair styling gadget, especially SS Shiny Hair Curler, you first got to have a good haircut. Hair shouldn't have too many awkward layers, and hair length must be kept to an optimum! Too short or too long of a hair length can be a challenge for you to effectively operate your beloved hair gadget.

My latest haircut with Hair Studio Flamingo

For good haircuts without an overkill of weird layers, do visit Ayumi or Ryu from Hair Studio Flamingo. Quote <Faith> to enjoy 20% OFF set menu. To read my review on Hair Studio Flamingo, click HERE.

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SS Shiny SMART QUEEN Hair Curler Korea can be purchased & shipped directly from South Korea via Qoo10 on link below : 

http://list.qoo10.sg/item/SS-SHINY-KOREA-LOWEST-PRICE-CORDLESS-HAIR-VOLUME-CURLING-IRON/491265020?selectedOptions=

Current Price: SGD 51 before shipping*.

**Prices are subjected to change. Shipping fees vary. 

P.S:  I am not endorsing or selling this SS Shiny SMART QUEEN Hair Curler; and the website link may be defunct at any moment. I will not be updated if website is moved or changed, so please refrain from asking me where to purchase it should that link be moved.

Hope this review is useful to you in some way. Have you tried something from SS Shiny Hair before? Leave a comment below to discuss!