Drug Store Make Up: Olive Young Haul ♥ REVIEW (Part 1)

While in Korea, drug stores were one of my favorite places to purchase skin care and make up products. Two of the drug stores that I purchased many skin care and make up products from were Olive Young & Watsons (I'll save Watsons for another post =P). Korean drug stores are a great way to find American and Japanese brand products that are rarely (if ever) available for purchase in the United States. Although Watson and Olive Young also carried some Korean brand products such as Laneige, Iope, Skin 79, etc., this is one of the few places where you can find American and Japanese products.

First I will talk about Olive Young...

"Olive Young is a drug store dealing with various items from health supplements to drugs, cosmetics and cosmetic accessories. It also offers health products, foods, and sundry goods." (For More Info) 

Like drug stores in the United States, Olive Young also carries a variety of other merchandise such as health products, food, and sundry goods; however, unlike most drug stores in the United States, more than 70% of their merchandise is comprised of skin care and make up products.

There are many Olive Young's located throughout Seoul, so you shouldn't have too much trouble finding an Olive Young. I know there is an Olive Young in Hongdae, Edae, and Myeongdong for sure (those are the Olive Young's that I visited), but I'm not too sure where other Olive Young's are located. However, they seem to be all over the place ^__^

See below for my review of the products I purchased:

♥ Products I'm Loving ^O^ ♥

 1) SKIN 79: Super Beblesh Balm (VIP Gold Collection) ~ Around $15.00 - $20.00

• I have been absolutely loving this concealer! After reading so many excellent reviews about this product from other make up gurus, I was very excited to purchase this product. 
• This product does not only have excellent coverage, but it also has UV protection (SPF 25/PA++) and contains ingredients that help with whitening and wrinkle improvement. 
• Since I purchased this product, I have pretty much been only using this BB cream. That's how amazing it is! ^____^
• Two of the most well known and reviewed SKIN 79 BB creams is the Super Beblesh Balm Triple Function (Pink- Left) and the Super Beblesh Balm VIP Gold Collection (Gold- Right). Since reviews for both BB creams were excellent, I had a very difficult time deciding which one to purchase.
• What is the difference between the two? Honestly there is not that much of a difference. Both BB creams have the same UV protection and both contain ingredients that help with whitening and wrinkle improvement. I was told by the sale's associate that the Triple Function is good for people with oily skin and the VIP Gold Collection is best for people with normal and combination skin. The shade of the two BB creams are also slightly different. The Triple Function BB cream is slightly lighter than the VIP Gold Collection, but not by much. Since there is only a very slight difference between the color of the two BB creams, I would decide which BB cream to buy based on your skin type rather than the shade. 
• Amount Used: A small amount, one tiny drop, is enough to cover my entire face. Since it has excellent coverage you don't need to pile on plenty of BB cream onto your face. 
• Application: Can be easily applied using a foundation brush or sponge, but you can also apply it with your fingers since it blends easily. When you first apply the BB cream, the color may look a little ashy but it quickly oxidizes to suit your skin tone.
  
  
  
  ** (Note: Although the BB cream oxidizes to suit your skin tone, it may not oxidize to suit your skin tone perfectly if your skin tone is very dark. Most BB creams are made to cater to fair to medium-light skin tones.)
• Price: Although it is a little more on the expensive side, especially in comparison to most BB creams at other Korean cosmetic stores (i.e. Etude House, Face Shop, Tony Moly, etc.), this is a fairly good price considering it's a higher quality BB cream. It's similar in price to other higher quality BB creams sold at Korean cosmetic stores. For example, the new Snail Therapy Bb cream at Nature Republic is about $20.00.
• Cons: No real cons. I absolutely love this BB cream! It would have been nicer if it had a thinner consistency, but overall it's great! I love the pump bottle container which is very convenient to use and more hygienic than using BB creams that come in jars or bottles. I also love that it helps with whitening and wrinkle improvement, since many other BB creams don't have these added benefits.  

2) CANMAKE: Perfect Stylist Eyes Eye Shadow Palette (03) ~ Around $10

•  I'm not going to lie, the first thing that caught my attention was the extremely cute packaging. This is probably the cutest eye shadow palette I own ^_^
• Aside from the cute packaging though, I was pleased to find that this was an excellent product overall!
• All of the shadow's colors are extremely cute and lovely on my eyelids, and very pigmented (which I absolutely love)!
• This is the perfect palette to use if you're trying to brighten up your eyes in a subtle way! ~*^__^*~_v
• I also love using the "Topping Jewel" color to highlight my brows!*~ 
• Cost: A great buy especially in comparison to other palettes such as Dior or Lunasol which cost around 5 times more. Although the quality of the eye shadows in the Dior palette is still slightly better, this is still a great eye shadow palette considering the price!
• Cons: I actually didn't think there were any cons until a few weeks ago when it fell about 2 feet off my dresser onto the floor. My first thought was that the eye shadows may have cracked. Fortunately the eye shadows didn't crack, but unfortunately the case did. I was devastated to find that I was unable to repair it =( Although the packaging is super cute, the quality of the packaging plastic is horrible! Be extremely careful with how you handle this palette if you purchase it.

2) CASTLEDEW: Color Shot Lips (140) ~ Around $7-$8

• Like the Canmake eye shadow palette above, the first thing that caught my attention was the super cute packaging (I'm such a sucker for anything with a cute packaging =P); however, after testing out the product I was pleased to find again that it was another great find!
• This lipstick is fairly moisturizing (perhaps not as moisturizing as Revlon's lip butter though) and goes on super smooth.
• There was also a large variety of colors available (~*I wish I also bought a more peachy color lipstick T_T*~) 
• The lipstick color also lasted fairly long throughout the day, even after I late lunch! ^O^
• Cost: In comparison to my other lipsticks such as my Dior and Paul & Joe lipsticks, the Castle Dew lipstick is far cheaper (and maybe even a little cheaper than other popular American drug store lip products like Revlon's lip butter). Although, I don't think I love it as much as my Dior or Paul & Joe lipstick, it's was a really great buy considering how cheap it was.
• Cons: The only downside to this lipstick was that the texture didn't seem to be as light as some of the other lipsticks I've tried such as the Paul & Joe lipstick. 

How it Looks when Applied