HopShopGo Haul #3

I don't know about you but I just seem to wanna buy a product more if it's not available where I live. Which is why HopShopGo.com, which is a forwarding company, has became my latest obsession. This is my third time shopping with them and this time I didn't go that crazy. 

Monthly Empties - September

September has been a mad rush for me, I was busy with uni and work. Plus, I got really sick :( Anyway, lets see what is in my empties tray.

Monthly Empties - July

I had written this post at the beginning of the month but since I was so busy I did not have time to take the photos. So finally today I did manage to quickly snap up these photos. Let's dig in shall we.

Monthly Empties - June

This month just went by so fast, I have been really busy with uni exams and essays. But now it's over and I have a bit of time to relax. I have had quite a few of opened products laying around and I made myself a list of what I need to finish before I open any thing else. Let's see what I manged to finish.

Monthly Empties April

Hello, I have been so impressed with how well I have been finishing products (knock on wood), that I have decided to make it a monthly blog post. I will also be adding samples because I have a box full and I also think it's a good idea for a quick mini review.

Empties #5

This time I haven't gotten around to finishing as much products as last time. I have been really good in that I haven't opened any new products. I'm trying to finish everything that I have open right now. I can control myself when it comes to skin care because I like to completely finish the product and then open something new, but when it comes to body care products I just cannot do the same. I have about 5-6 bottles of body lotions open and they are all over the house, in the bathroom, bedroom, near my bed, near my desk, and on my dresser. I WILL finish them without opening another one. Anyway let's see what I finished this time.

Haul MAC, Bath and Body Works, E.L.F and Walgreens + hopshopgo.com review

When you live in a country that sells "drugstore" make up at high end prices you are left with a really hard decision on what to try out. Beauty bloggers and Youtube certainly don't make that easy, because you keep on read and watching people rave about how amazing Revlon Kissable lip stains are, and how they just love some cheap and great E.L.F product is. And then you rush out to your nearest Priceline only to be shocked at how expensive it cost here in Australia, and if your like me you look, swatch and leave empty handed because you just cannot justify the price.

This got me search good ol' Google for alternatives and most of the results was eBay listings but how can you tell the product is still fresh and not a million years old. So I some how stumbled across HopShopGo.com which is created by the people at PayPal so you know it's safe to use. So how does it work I hear you saying?? Well it basically a forwarding company, you sign up with your PayPal e-mail and they give you an American address that you use. HopShopGo.com also offer a buy for me option for website that don't accept international credit cards.

What really made me jump ahead with the forwarding company was Bath and Body Works, they were having a buy 3 get 3 free on all of the body care section. I have tired their products before and really liked them so I knew it was a good deal. I ordered 3 triple moisture creams and got 3 free of my choice. I also got a Slatkin & Co candle in White Sand.

Bath and Body Works

 I then ordered for E.L.F they were having 50% off the eyes section, so I got some brushes, mascaras, eyeshadow and some other things. I know E.L.F have an Australian website, but seriously have you seen there prices absolutely ridiculous, for example the essential line costs $1.00 in Australia the same line costs from $2.99-$3.99. So I got a really good deal with the 50% off. However, a few days later they were having a 50% off the Studio line and so I had to get the flat powder brush that everyone raves about.

E.L.F I actually got two packages :)

Next was Walgreens they were having Buy 1, Get 1 Free on all of the Revlon items. I have been wanting to try the Revlon Colourstay foundation for the longest time ever, but it costs $34.95 in Australia, while in America is cost $12.99. So I bought the Revlon Kissable Lip Stains, ColourBurst Lip Butters and the ColourStay Whipped foundation.

Walgreens

 My final stop was the MAC site, to be honest I have never set foot in a MAC counter mostly because I cannot afford it. But the US site was considerably much more affordable than the Australian one. I got the famous MAC Face and Body foundation, Studio concealer, Fix+ and Strobe cream.

MAC goodies

Overall, the shipping was a bit expensive but I did choose to use the speed delivery and my items arrived within 3 days. Even with the shipping fees the items I bought were still much cheaper than buying them in Australia. I quite enjoyed shopping with HopShopGo and I would definitely shop with them again.

Stay tuned as I will be doing separate posts on the items I bought with swatches.

Love,
Sakura

Empties #1

Hi, today I have an empties post. I have been reading and loving these kind of post lately, so I decided to do that as well. I don't know if I can do a monthly empties post because I just won't have enough products to talk about. But these posts to encourage me to use up products a lot faster. So lets dig in.  

Garnier Body Intensive 7 days Hydrating Lotion- 400mL         
I have the one in Aloe Vera, its a nice body lotion great for summer. Provides moisture without leaving any stickiness on the skin. Sinks in to the skin very quickly. Does it leave the skin moisturized for 7 whole days. No, it doesn't.
Repurchase? Yes, already have.

Bath & Body Works P.S I Love You Triple Moisture Body Cream- 226g
This is a very thick cream, I really enjoyed using this during the colder months. Despite it being very thick in texture, my dry skin absorbed this very quickly. Towards the end I had to cut it open to use up and to my surprise there was quite a lot of product left. I wasn't really into the fragrance but it wasn't very strong and didn't last a long time.
Repurchase? No, we don't have Bath & Body Works in Australia :(

TonyMoly Floria Whitening Capsule Essence- 50mL
I got this a long time ago and had an on-off relationship with it. While I did love the brightening effect, I think and I'm not sure but when I used this on a daily basis I would get little bumps on my face and mostly forehead. It did not whiten my skin, but it gave a brighter look to it, however that did not last too long either.
Repurchase? No, I have way too many other serums/essences to try out.

Naruko Lupin Anti-Wrinkle Friming Serum- 30mL
I did a review on this here. I really like this serum, every thing from the texture to the smell. While I did  not notice any firming effects, I also don't have any wrinkles on my face, yet. A gel like texture that sinks into the skin very fast and evens out the skin.
Repurchase? Yes, if I make another order from Naruko. 

Mizon Snail Repair Eye Cream- 20mL
This cream promised a lot, but did not deliver anything. Promising to diminish fine lines and even improve deep wrinkles, and remove dark circles. No, it did nothing for me except provide sufficient moisture without feeling heavy.
Repurchase? No, I still have one that come part of a set, so I might do a review. 

Clinique Even Better Skin Tone Corrector- 30mL
I didn't use them up both by myself. One of them belonged to my mother who just could not stand the fragrance and gave it to me, just when I finished my one. While it does state that it's 100% fragrance free, there is a chemical smell to it. I just can't throw it out because of the smell so I forced myself to use it up. I think it did a good job of evening out the skin.
Repurchase? No, I can't stand the smell.

Isa Knox MX-II Platinum Recovery Skin- 100mL
You can read the review here. A quick review its was really nice to use and I will be using the other set next winter, because I just think its too moisturizing during summer and I have dry skin so it better for winter.
Repurchase? No, because I have another set to use.     

Isa Knox MX-II Platinum Recovery Emulsion- 100mL
Reviewed here. This is a thick, very thick cream. I'm call it a cream because it was literally a pain is the @$$ to get out of the bottle. They should have thought of adding a pump instead of having me to bang this on my palm very day. While it was so thick, it surprises me of how quick it absorbs and how soft it makes my skin.
Repurchase? No, because I have another set to use.   

Sooryehan Boyun Extra Moisturizing Cream- 25mL
I got two of these deluxe sample/travel sized as part of the Sooryehan set that I brought from G-market. A nice moisture that sink into the skin without leaving and residue or shine. It smells very floral, but this goes away very quickly. A great cream with beautiful packing details on the lid and even come with a spatula.
Repurchase? No, because I have another one to use up.

That's all for this post. I will do another empties post when I have enough products.


Love,
Sakura