By the Muse on May 19, 2010
Hey chicklets!
Dunno about you but I’m really into bright, vibrant shades for Spring/Summer but lately I’ve really tamed down my wild makeup ways so this year I’m kinda embracing natural and nude for the warmer weather. Because honestly, who wants to wear a ton of eye makeup, face makeup, gloss, etc…on a hot day. Right?
Korres agrees which is why they created the online exclusive Korres Pure Nude Collection. Think amazingly flattering, minimalistic nude shades for lips and eyes. Think you likey?
Wait till you see my before and afters!
Jump!
Read More...
By the Muse on April 22, 2008
I get a crumb load of questions asking me how to shop for Japanese Cosmetics.
Where can I buy Japanese Cosmetics?
How much do they cost?
Any online shops I can buy them from?
Where do you get your Japanese Cosmetics?
I was going to do this post a very long time ago but I just never really had the chance and it was long forgotten on the bottom of my draft pile of blog entries that never got posted!
I’ve tweaked it a bit and rewrote most of it so here it is in all it’s glory!
First of all many Japanese brands are unavailable within the US, UK, and Europe in general. I’ve discussed a few various brands available in a few countries such as Korea, Japan, etc…this particular post will be a guide for purchasing Japanese Cosmetics but in a future post I may cover a few other countries.
If you’re purchasing Japanese Cosmetics online you’ll have to educate yourself a bit on prices and also arm yourself with a few tools.
My first suggestion is install a Chinese and Japanese Language Pack for your browser so you can view various Japanese Websites and get prices on various items prior to purchasing. Downloading and installing these packs will also unable you to copy the text and paste it into a translation tool which helps when trying to figure out what is going on at certain sites.
Click here to download the Japanese Language Pack
Click here to download the Chinese Language Pack
Note: For viewing Taiwanese, Hong Kong, and a few select Chinese sites you may need to install the Traditional Chinese Language Pack as these countries, cultures, and regions use a traditional, more complex form of character than other sites.
I’ve actually found that it doesn’t matter too much which Language Pack you choose however I have all three installed as I find it does make it a tiny bit easier during the tedious translation process!
The reason I recommend this is because most online shops charge anywhere from $5 USD all the way up to $12 USD on top of retail prices. Prices are a good deal higher online then if you happened into a drugstore in Japan and purchased the item yourself!
I almost always pay retail for my Japanese Cosmetics because I have some sincerely beautiful, wonderful friends that live in Japan and do shopping for me. However, on occasion, I am forced to buy items online. In cases like this I want to be sure that I am getting the best deal possible so I do alot of homework prior to purchasing items.
You should also keep in mind that many drugstores in Japan discount various items 25-30% which means the retail prices online do not reflect the discount.
Example:
T’estimo Palettes are shown on the Kanebo website at the price of $30 USD or so however upon purchasing one in a drugstore in Japan the actually cost would be $20 USD or so due to the drugstore discount.
This means it’s an open market for online sellers to charge you $30 and upwards for a palette they paid $20 USD or so for.
Currently, the Yen is very, very strong so you might want to Google around a bit and see if you can locate any Taiwanese shops that sell Japanese Cosmetics as the cost is a bit lower.
I highly recommend JPmon which is located within Taiwan. I’ve done a “how to order” from JPMon on another tutorial page you can find that article by clicking here and here. You’ll be happy to know that the prices measure up pretty nicely with what you’d see on Japanese sites however not the discount you’d get within a Japanese drugstore as mentioned above!
I’ve ordered from JPmon many, many times and I’ve always been very pleased with their services so I highly recommend purchasing from them! If you have a few online friends or friends in general into cosmetics doing a bit of “spree” with friends can cut shipping costs and each of you can split the total cost of shipping which always helps!
Another important tool you’ll need is a currency convertor. This is especially helpful for converting Yen to your currency of choice. This is good tool to have when you’re browsing various Japanese websites and looking at prices to see what the original cost of an item is versus what the online shop you’re buying from is charging. I use XE for conversions. It’s not the best convertor in the world but it does an ok job and is off a few cents at most.
Click here to bookmark XE.
Finally the last tool you’ll need is a translator. This is especially helpful for figuring out what certain items are for, what the details are for an item, etc…
Babel Fish does an ok job with translations but definately not word for word as the language is so complex that “literally” translating it into English (or your language of choice) doesn’t always mean you’ll understand exactly what is going on!
Click here to bookmark Babel Fish.
Babel Fish is especially useful as it translates both simplified and traditional Chinese plus Japanese as well!
I don’t use Babel Fish as much as I do a simple add on for Firefox entitled Translator. It works a treat and makes translating full websites a snap!
You can download this extension by clicking here!
Not many shops online sell Japanese Cosmetics but there are a few that I’ve used in the past and have had great experiences and success with!
Those sites are, as follows:
- www.adambeauty.com
- www.bobodave.com
- www.facial-shop.com
- www.ichibankao.com
- www.jpmon.com
- www.gooddealer.com
- sh1.yahoo.edyna.com/hijapan (I’m sorry but I do not have a tutorial for ordering from Hi Japan but maybe I’ll do one in the future!)
The best possible prices are located at Adam Beauty and JPMon in my humble opinion and Facial Shop also has some incredible deals as well!
Other places you might see Japanese Cosmetics from would be E-bay. E-bay has many sellers that sell various Japanese Cosmetics. I find asking for a deal on shipping, asking for lower prices, etc..sometimes works with E-bay sellers. Remember to be courtesy when asking and reasonable. If something is marked as $39.99 USD and they want $9.99 shipping don’t go and ask them to give it to you for $20 with Free Shipping. I think you understand my point?
I also find that dealing with the same E-bay Seller over and over again makes the chances of scoring a deal from them easier!
Please keep in mind prior to purchasing cosmetics that freshness is important! I find in some cases some online shops do sell older items. This is particular true of BoboDave on occasion and Hi Japan. The good thing about this is that some items, such as LE, are still available from these shops but the bad thing is the product is older. Keep that in mind prior to making your purchase! This is one reason I do not shop at Strawberry.net. Items are awfully old and beyond shelf date!
Below is a list of links for various Japanese Brands that I adore (I’m sure I left a few out!):
I think I pretty much covered everything you need to know about ordering Japanese Cosmetics. If you need any help do comment and I’ll happily help in anyway I can!
Good Luck and Happy Shopping!
By the Muse on February 20, 2008
Sometime ago a reader and mate, Taryn, was kind enough to create a registration tutorial for JPmon for the readings of Musings of a Muse!
I had originally created a JPmon tutorial for ordering but a few of you had asked me about registering and for the life me I can’t recall how I registered for the site! Duh!
But Taryn was kind enough to create a most excellent tutorial to get you all registered up prior to following my tutorial for ordering!
So here’s your first step in registering with JPmon! After this you can click here to use my tutorial to help with processing and completing your order!
If you’re clueless about JPmon allow me to explain that’s it’s an online shop that sells tons of Japanese and Asian Cosmetic Brands! The prices are decent and not too bad! Airmail shipping costs aren’t fabulous but JPmon has many brands you can’t find in online shops so it’s a great place to stock up on unique and unusual cosmetic items!
If you have online (or offline) mates that are into Japanese cosmetics you can do a bit of a group order to save on your shipping costs!
Anyway!
On with Taryn’s great tutorial (click the images to enlarge):
Thanks Taryn! A ton of people are going to be very happy to have this!
By the Muse on February 8, 2008
Hey Guys!
One of my readers, Millie, asked very sweetly for a Tutorial using the Lavshuca Winter Make Palette in 01, which is the Berry Mix, and of course I’d be happy to do it for her (I’m flattered she asked!)!
I’m crap at Tutorials but I hope this helps somehow Millie!
Keep in mind Millie is Asian and sadly my eyes are nowhere (as you know they are rather large and buggy) near Asian in appearance so this might not be of help to some of you or Poor Millie for that matter!
This is really simple one but I think it has the potential to look very natural, elegant, and pretty!
One of the main colors in the palette is a very pale, light shade of pink and I find that the pink actually contrasts beautifully with the dark purplish liner in the palette. The funny thing about the liner is when it’s on your eye it reflects off of the rather washed out pink color and makes it appear a berry purple color.
Before I start the tutorial I thought I’d post the promo images so you can see the shadow in action on Puffy!
Our model on the left hand side is wearing the palette I’ll be using! The thing that I love about Lavshuca is that the models don’t appear heavily made up nor do they appear to be wearing something that isn’t in the palette that they are advertising. The look doesn’t appear to be too difficult to create or leave you with a feeling of how in the world can I create this using just this palette!
The only thing I did notice about the models is that they may be wearing a bit of a heavier liner on the lower and possibly the upper lash lines! Aside from that the colors are identical to what is in the palette!
I buy tons of cosmetics and I always see promo images with models wearing the makeup and it influences me to purchase a particular shade or palette and of course when I get home the colors never work together or I’m unable to recreate the same look as the model because obviously the colors weren’t used on the model or they photo shopped the hell out of the image! It deserves to be said this happens mostly with western brands I’ve noticed!
I babbled enough! On with the tutorial!
Here’s what I created using my Winter Make palette! I took two sets of photos, one set consists of me using only the lipcream and glitter top gloss on my lips. After I completed my look I just felt my lips weren’t “popping” enough so I added some Sony CP Curvy Lip Silicon on top! My face appears super duper white in the images! Apologies but the flash from my camera was reflecting off my shirt and giving me the look of a ghost!
What I Used:
Eyes:
Lavshuca Winter Make Palette in 01
Lips:
Lavshuca Winter Make Palette
Sony CP Curvy Lip Silicon
Face:
NARS Blush in Angelika
Without Gloss:
With Gloss:
Ok now that I’ve exhausted you with babblings and pictures I’ll get on with the tutorial!
I started by taking the lightest cream shade on the left hand side of the palette and worked it from my highbrow all the way to my crease. Use the applicator the palette came with! The sponge applicator is the perfect way to pack on the color and especially handy since the colors are so light! I need alot of the color but if you’re Asian one nice coat of the cream shade should do it, if not pick up more color and work it in.
After giving my highbrow and crease a wash of color with the cream I took the pink shade (middle color) and worked it onto my lid. I dipped about three times into the palette to build up the pink as it’s such a light color. Again, if you’re Asian you might not need as much as it might cake. My eyes dominate my face and I have ALOT of eye area to cover so three times is about the right amount for me.
Millie said she was having a difficult time with the liner palette and wondering if she should line her upper and lower line. I personally opped to line my lower lash line and as you can see the models also sport the liner on the bottom lash line however Millie had expressed she felt it looked weird on! You can always just use the pale pink on your lower lash line instead and it’ll brighten the look up!
In order to achieve the “smoke” of the look I drew a large line onto my eye using the last color in the palette. I proceeded to use a smudge eye brush (if you don’t have one just use a small eyeshadow brush) to blend the color into my lash line and “smoke” it out so to speak. I know from prior use that the purple black of the color looked a tad weird on my bottom lash line as well so before applying I take a bit of the pink and line with that and I proceed to take whatever remains on my applicator from my upper lining (don’t dip again you’ll have plenty on the applicator left over from prior application on your upper lashline) and line my lower eye! If you find that you don’t have enough of the color to line the lower lash line very lightly re-dip and proceed to line a bit more. Don’t over do it. It’s a very strange purple color so use a tiny bit and you’ll find you get just the look you want!
After that I used the lipcream, applied the glitter top gloss and done! I found that the color was too matte for me so I used a bit of gloss to spice it up!
And Bob’s your uncle! You’ve got a killer look using the Winter Make Tutorial!
I know I don’t have a ton of pics to accompany the tutorial but I did this prior to work this morning as I just got Millie’s comment this morning!
Hope it helps Millie!!!!!!!
Maybe you’ll send some pics so we can see what you create!
Hugs!
Click here to read my first impressions of the Lavshuca Winter Make Collection!
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