October 17, 2018

E-Bay Is an Endless Source of K-Beauty, J-Beauty, and Other Fabulous Beauty & Makeup Finds

I was compensated by a brand or company but all thoughts and opinions are my own and I receive a small commission if you shop using the links in this post.

I started Musings of a Muse ten plus years ago and you have no idea how old that makes me feel! One of my first Etude House posts dates back to 2008 and I have Japanese Beauty posts that date back even further. It’s pretty crazy how much K-Beauty has evolved and how heavily it has influenced and infiltrated the US market. Facial sheet masks, multi-step skincare routines, doll lashes, and so much more have become fairly standard in the US makeup, beauty, and skincare world and a lot of it was influenced by Korean beauty trends. But one of the most important aspects of Korean beauty is the fact it is now so readily available in the US. Many brands like Etude House, Tony Moly, Skin Food, and others have their own stores, are sold at popular retailers, and have their own websites that allow you to easily pick up any of your favorite K-Beauty picks easily.

About five or so years ago that was impossible and one of the best and most reliable sources for K and J-Beauty was ebay.com. E-bay has and will always be one of the easiest ways to shop for obscure Korean or Japanese beauty brands easily and safely thanks to their money back guarantee and buyer protection. I mean don’t get me wrong, it a heck of a lot easier tracking down your favorite K-Beauty nowadays than it was five or so years ago but there’s still some delay in getting newly launched just available products from both Korea and Japan. The market is a bit delayed in the US and we tend to get certain skincare collections or makeup launches five or six months after Korea has gotten them. Needless to say for those of us, like me, who love instant gratification this isn’t an ideal set up.

I have spent many, many fine years finding great, reliable sellers on E-bay that ship quickly and most times for free with retail prices on some of the latest and greatest launches from abroad!

Even though we are knee deep, wait, cross that out, we are neck deep in Holiday 2018 I am still very much all about Fall and Etude House has some killer Fall 2018 items that are well worth picking out that can easily be purchased on ebay.com! I’m pretty excited that Etude House is doing a new Play Eyes Eyesahdow Palette this season called Caffeine Holic which is a follow up to the In the Cafe Play Eyes Palette. This new palette features ten matte and sparkle eyeshadows inspired by coffee! Along with the launch they are re-promoting some really gorgeous brown based shades of My Blooming Lips Lipstick as well as a brown-based Cookie Blusher in Pink Brownie. Needless to say, this is on the top of my list of collections that I want for Fall! And thankfully all my favorite E-bay sellers have started carrying it!

Another item that I discussed with you late last month was the Etude House Nuts & Fruits Look at my Eyes Collection that includes ten eyeshadows as well as a refillable eyesahdow palette all housed in a collectible tin! Some people might not want the whole collection (I’m greedy I must have them all!) and that’s perfectly fine as individual shades as sold as little as $5 each with free shipping on E-bay!

With Fall still on my mine as well as Etude House you might want to try looking up the new Shine Chic Lip Lacquer also brown-based colors in oranges, browns, pink browns, and other Fall favorite shades that are popping up on E-bay for $10 or so. This formula has a creamy texture with a glossy, pigmented finish.

But Etude House is pretty mainstream if you really want to dig deep you might want to check our sellers that specialize in Japanense skincare I mean, right now, Korean Skincare is all the rage but there are plenty amazing brands out of Japan that are pretty darn incredible. Cult favorites like Fancl’s Cleansing Oil aren’t something that’s easily located in the US but can be shipped right from E-bay to your door. You might know I’m a massive fan of Sana’s Hadanomy Collagen Skincare (especially the hydrating facial mist) and it’s easily purchased from one of my favorite sellers AlphabeautyUK. You can also get some very interesting Biore products not available in the US that are available in the Japanese market such as Biore’s Cleansing Oil (I know right? You’re thhinking how do we not have this in the US!?!) and their bi-phase formulated makeup remover for eyes and lips.

As for Japanese makeup, there’s always everyone’s favorite, Jill Stuart which is also available from E-bay sellers that sell at close to retail prices. But most importantly it’s actually really fun looking at common brands like Maybelline and L’Oreal all of which have some items we haven’t gotten yet in the US like Baby Lips Candy Wow Color Lip Balm and Lip Flush Bitten Lip Graduation Lipstick Rouge.

Needless to say hunting down unique makeup from abroad is a rather fun experience. Lately, we’ve discussed a lot about the softening beauty market here in the US and how the downfall of mid-range beauty brands seems to be upon us but oddly enough Korea and Japan thrive on releasing new skincare and makeup constantly and their market is alive, thriving, and making billions of dollars a year. It’s also still a very exciting frontier that I haven’t grown bored with in all my years collecting and using it! Thankfully, tracking it down is a lot simplier thanks to E-bay because otherwise, I’d be taking a very expensive plane trip to Asia to stock up!

What are your favorite E-bay makeup, beauty, and skincare finds? Do you haul any favorites from abroad? Or try your hand at finding discontinued or limited edition items?

Do share!

I was compensated by a brand or company but all thoughts and opinions are my own and I receive a small commission if you shop using the links in this post.

About the Muse

Isabella MuseIsabella is just an average everyday geeky girl who doesn’t blend her eyeshadow correctly, wears too much blush, and hopes she never finds her holy grail products because she likes the thrill of the chase so much. Her mission is to bring you super honest reviews on makeup, skincare, fragrance and all things beauty. She’s in no way an expert on the topic and she sure as hell isn’t a super model. But she’s passionate about makeup and is seeking like-minded individuals that like pina coladas, getting caught in the rain, and ones that enjoy spending hundreds of dollars at Sephora without feeling buyer’s remorse. If you’re that person feel free to reach out and leave a comment or follow me on Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, and Bloglovin‘.

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Comments

  • Meghan

    It was because of this blog that I discovered DHC and their amazing cleansing oil! You had a post about the Disney collection they did, and I bought the Alice in Wonderland cleansing oil. Such beautiful packaging and I wish they came out with another collection!!! Makes me want to make another order…

    Thanks so much for this blog!

    • Isabella Muse

      YAY!!!! they have done a few cute disney ones since ;-D I’m so glad you got the Alice one it was my fav! I still have the bottles (I refill them)! ;-D

    • Isabella Muse

      I actually typically avoid amazon and go straight for ebay! go figure! haha!

  • Gayle Galor

    I’ll never forget years ago reading one of your posts about how the BB creams coming out in the US were so different from the Korean ones you’d used. Back then I remember thinking, “What the heck is a BB cream??” That must have been really close to the time that you first started. So it’s been really nice getting all your advice and reviews for so long! We love you, so keep it up!

    • Isabella Muse

      aw thanks Gayle <3! 🙂 thanks for reading so long!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

  • julie fielding

    Um, okay, no specifics, since I know I am not allowed any shameless plugs, BUT as a full time cosmetic, fragrance and skincare seller on ebay (mostly domestic brands) I thank you for this. Many of us have friends in the industry that get training and promo overstock where we can get our products (most of the time new releases, new in box) and pass the savings on to the customer. It is a win/win, and I always encourage buyers to look at ebay first before Amazon and retail.

    • Isabella Muse

      holy cow you do? How is you have been a friend here for 10 plus years and I am just hearing about this? Shameless plug away ;-D I want to visit your ebay store! I always shop ebay before amazon ;-D

  • julie fielding

    Wow, okay, will do. Main store:
    http://stores.ebay.com/COSMIC-COSMETICS
    and smaller side non-store:
    https://www.ebay.com/sch/bigboybeauty/m.html?_trksid=p3692
    Right now we are a little low on the goods, since we are winding down and leaving for a week to Disneyland this Saturday. A little of this and that, like Dr. Gross, Becca, BareMinerals, etc.
    Stop by ANYTIME! We have been selling since 2003 even during my years at Duwop, Benefit, & Avon Corporate, but it’s been a full time gig since 2016. Love you madly for allowing me to write this…xoxo

  • F1wild

    Cheers for the ebay seller scoop! I’m always checking out the bay for awesome deals.
    Alsk, thanks for the Sana recommendation. I’m always looking for highly recommended dry skin skincare items. Any other faves, HGs you’d like to share? I still would love an insight into your super fave Kirean/Japanese items and/or permanent fixtures in your routine.

    • Isabella Muse

      My pleasure! <3! At the moment my list is huge! I'm actually looking into creating a post shortly with some of my favs ;-D

  • Cil

    I am around NC44 with an olive skin. It is near impossible to find a perfect foundation for me… except for Estee Lauder Double Wear 4w2 (i use correctors with the other ones I have).

    That is my skin in a bottle. It is super matte, but when it mixes with my oils it gives a beautiful skin like finish and it STAYS. It is everything that I ever dreamed my perfect foundation would be… except…

    The problem? It is impossible to buy it from any retailer around the world, even the ones that send internationally as they don’t send to Brazil most of the time or don’t carry this shade.

    Ebay is my salvation!

    Funny enough, the brands under the EL umbrella are sold here (mac, smashbox, too faced) except the mothership itself.

    • Isabella Muse

      Honestly, Ebay is def a salvation for many, many people from abroad who are looking for different items from the US (or other countries) for sure ;D I’m so glad you’re able to find your HG foundation there ;D

  • Elle

    Ok, I will admit, I am an Asian Beauty junkie. I know that I have a serious love (obsession) for the stuff! I buy about 80% of my stash from eBay. Brands like Benton, Mizon, NeoGen, Cosrx, Missha, and Hado Labo. There are so many more that I could list. My skin has really changed for the better since I started using these products. I really like the lip products that I have bought on eBay, too. I don’t think that I have ever had to pay for shipping, either. As far as the shipping time, there are a growing number of sellers in the USA which means I usually get the stuff in a few days.

    • Isabella Muse

      Yay! I’m totally a k-beauty skincare junkie and a j-beauty makeup lover ;-D def love all those brands too! Hada Labo is life changing for dry skin ;-D

  • Marie

    Hi Muse, I have been following you for more than 10 years now and I remember back then that you were the first beauty blog to mention Japanese and Korean skincare and cosmetics (I remember your great reviews on Korean BB creams…). That’s when I started to visit Japan and I was looking for advice and thanks to you, I discovered great products and since then I have regularly visited your site. I love Japanese skincare and would like to know if you could recommend a reliable seller on eBay. Thanks again and keep up the great reviews!
    A faithful follower,
    Marie

    • Isabella Muse

      omg thank you Marie for following so long!! I am truly flattered you’ve stuck with me so long! One of my favorite ebay seller’s is alphabeautyuk! they have a wide assortment of Japanese products and brands! ;-D F2plus1 is another fav of mine for K-Beauty ;D