All posts in: Beauty For Breakfast

17 May 2021

Beauty for Breakfast Pt. 39

If there’s anything that truly saved me during the pandemic it was the combination of Mighty Patch’s Micropoint for Dark Spots and Invisible+. My face wasn’t used to having a mask on along with everyone else! Essentially this further trapped the oils on our face underneath our pores, but once the maskne hit, I quickly found a solution. For years, I sampled different patch products never quite landing on a favorite. Along the way I learned about Hero Cosmetics and its founder, an Asian-American woman named Ju Rhyu. I did some internet research from their Instagram and reviews and found that products were easily purchasable through Amazon or at my local Target.

Within a couple of months, my maskne was clearing. For everyday use, Invisible+ is what I frequent the most. For the pesky ones, a combo of the two products works best. Sold at an affordable price point, I can’t say enough good things about Hero Cosmetics and it’s the one product I boast about the most. Plenty of product I’ve tried promise “invisibility,” but none quite like this. And if patches aren’t your thing, might I suggest using silk masks?

Hero Cosmetics is a brand I’m keeping my eye on. Since the release of the patches, it seems they’re exploring other avenues for skincare too!

Life

24 Aug 2019

Beauty For Breakfast Pt. 38

I have found my forever sunscreen! Now, I know we haven’t gotten to my Taiwan trip post yet, but I would’ve been fried if not for this. Of course, sunscreen was the one thing that I forgot to pack in my suitcase, but lucky for me I had this with Angel’s recommendation. Sunscreen is probably last on my list when I’m looking forward to shopping in part because I’ve never had a good one. Every thing I’ve bought has always been greasy, slimy and feels exactly like sunscreen. The difference in Biore is that it is lighter than your normal liquids and goes on smooth. It resembles something closer to my moisturizer that I use for my face than a typical body lotion.

I have no qualms when it comes to this sunscreen except that the container could be larger. I’m still using the same one that I purchased in Taiwan and milking it for every last drop, but will dread the day I actually run out. The good news is that you can buy this on [Amazon] no problem. The bad news is it won’t be as cheap as it was in Taiwan. I wish I had purchased myself a handful of these, but instead I just brought a couple back for Kevin.

Life

05 May 2019

Beauty For Breakfast Pt. 37

When traveling, it doesn’t always make the most sense to bring along your entire skincare regimen. I wanted to be effective, but also bring the least amount of items with me. There wasn’t going to be time for me to mask every night, but at the very least, I could wash off my makeup, right? I was at Target getting some last minute items when I stumbled across Neutrogena’s new makeup remover cleansing towelettes. Normally, you would recognize these in it’s own square packaging with about 25 wipes. Since that seemed a bit too bulky for my suitcase and I was only gone for a week, I decided to buy this instead. I knew I wouldn’t have to take it all with me and opted for just 7 – the amount of days I’d be gone.

I’m a fan. Each towelette comes individually wrapped for single use. As opposed to having the other package, sometimes I worry that I close it incorrectly causing it to dry out by accident. Maybe I should go on to say that I’m a fan of daily anything. I even use daily contacts because it’s more hygienic and I feel the same way about these wipes. You can purchase them at any drugstore or Target, but can find more information [here]. I’m excited now that I can take these on trips with me, but also pop them into my purse or work bag for any quick cleanses!

Design

25 Jul 2018

Beauty for Breakfast Pt. 36

When we were younger, there really wasn’t such a thing as an evening skincare routine. In fact, my routine consisted of taking out my contacts and brushing my teeth. It wasn’t until the end of high school that I discovered Neutrogena cleansing wipes, but even I saw that as a chore in itself. Fast forward to 2018 and taking off your makeup for the day can take anywhere from 45 minutes to an hour. Aside from just washing your face, you have to use a cleanser, a mask, and toner. Well, let me tell you, I’ve got the lazy girl’s guide to an evening routine down, but it’s not one that I would advise for everyone. When bareMinerals sent me their Skinlongevity Vital Power Infusion, I was thrilled to try it out. After making a purchase at their store a month before, I actually got to take home a sample. I had never tried anything quite like this. It was the perfect finish after cleansing and exfoliating my face in the evenings and went on so easily. All it requires are two little pumps to cover your face and you’re good to go! Don’t forget to also make sure you get your neck as that’s a part I generally end up missing. Vital Power Infusion feels like it locks in my moisturizer after a cleanse and doesn’t feel heavy at all after application. It’s exactly the kind of product you want when your skin can feel dry and tight after a wash. For your own Skinlongevity, click here.

Design

05 May 2018

Beauty for Breakfast Pt. 35

[Caudalie Moisturizing Mask]- $39

2018 is supposed to be my year of self care, however, we haven’t been talking about it that much! Throughout the year, I’ve been trying to discover what my balance is between doing what’s good for myself and my body, but that I don’t enjoy as much and then…self-indulgence. Most of the time, instead of straddling between both, I lean heavily on indulgence, but what else is new? College me would’ve loved to celebrate Cinco de Mayo today with all of my friends, but late 20’s me is too tired for all of that. Instead, I’ve had a really peaceful day that felt balanced between a bit of work, socializing, and some of my favorite things.

Today, I’m proud to have not put any toxins into my body (alcohol) and instead had a nice milk tea and pampering of one of my favorite masks. During the busiest times, it often feels like we don’t even have the time to take care of ourselves. I can say that as of lately, more than ever, I’ve felt that I haven’t had enough hours in the day. There were a few times in the last couple of weeks that I even considered pulling an all nighter to complete some of my tasks from work. That sort of thing just isn’t acceptable after college!

However, you celebrated today or didn’t, I hope you all had a day that you just enjoyed. Currently, I can’t believe how late it is and how not tired I am. I’m also enjoying a new show – Killing Eve and wearing my mask (above) for longer than 15 minutes and loving every part of it.

For this mask, it’s recommended that you wear it for 15 minutes before washing it off. The other alternative is wearing overnight, which seem like two extremes to me. Readers, do you ever consider wearing any of your masks overnight when you head to bed? My biggest worry is that I end up with a mess on my pillowcase the next morning since I’m more of a mover when I’m sleeping. Would love to hear your thoughts on this!

Design

01 Apr 2018

Beauty for Breakfast Pt. 34

Earlier this year, I discovered a drugstore product that I wish I had found years and years prior. Pimples and acne are the worst, but as we all know, they come in a variety. Sometimes it’s right on the surface, beneath the surface, or come in as a blackhead with skin grown over, etc. I’m prone to getting the type of pimples that grow beneath the surface and take forever rising to the top. The result is that they end up being a bump on your face that you don’t want to pop because it will likely make it even worse or start to scar.

I had been reading a few articles about this to see how I could get rid of them safely. Most highlighted a warm compress as being the #1 option, but who has the time for that? Then I read about these acne stickers. They were pretty inexpensive at just $6.50 a pop so I thought I would try and find it at my local drugstore. Unable to find them, I relied on a source I knew would have them – Amazon.

This product in particular comes with 36 stickers, but only two sizes – regular and large. They say that you can put them on during the day and cover it with makeup, but I didn’t do a good job of hiding it so I stick to wearing it only in the evenings and overnight. The sticker is meant to be put over your affected spot and acts as a non-drying way to clean up clogged pores. In the morning your sticker should appear white because it has pulled out all of the oils and pus. It’s half disgusting, but half satisfying. It allows your blemish to not be picked at during this time and removes all of the bad stuff without making it worse. Whenever, I feel a new “beneath the surface” blemish coming through, this is my first act of defense.

Uncategorized

24 Dec 2017

Yow Yow’s Top 10 Posts of 2017

It isn’t hard to push out a post when I need to. They can range from anything to a YouTube video to a song on Spotify or a quote against a printed background in an interesting typeface on Pinterest. While I like to think that varying lengths of posts make Yow Yow! really interesting, it’s those essays that I spend the most time on that I’m proud of. 2017 was a year of changes not only for me personally, but for Yow Yow! There was a lot happening in the world that I wanted to share an opinion about and I’ll admit, I don’t always get it right. I’ve received some criticism over the last year for some of the pieces that I’ve written, which challenged me, but I also received positive feedback as well. Overall, it felt like a step in the right direction. As much as I love writing about food, music, and fashion, I can’t let Yow Yow! only be about that. And the reason why is just because that’s not what I’m only all about. Thank you all for letting me stretch my creativity with this and for continuing to stick with us.

Style

26 Jun 2017

Beauty for Breakfast Pt. 33

When I received my Alison Brod Marketing + Communications package with this Clinique Gelato Cream in it, I thought it would be like any other body cream or lotion. I wrote it off because I had owned so many products like it before. Then one morning, I decided that I couldn’t avoid the adorable millennial pink packaging any more. The texture was smooth, creamy, and I honestly couldn’t get enough of it. The jar itself was so big and the cream was filled to the very top that I knew it would last me forever. Even after I took one swipe of it, it felt like I had barely used any and by then I had used it on both my legs and my arms. The scent is also incredibly yummy. I’ve never had anything quite like it and now I’m obsessed. I feel like all of my girlfriends need this at home. Buy your own here!

Style

03 Jun 2017

Beauty for Breakfast Pt. 32

This is a little bit overdue, but I didn’t want to miss out on an opportunity to talk about one of my favorite beauty brands – Benefit. For the past two years, Mandi and I have been so lucky to have our holiday parties fall on the same evening in December. We’ve turned this into a little bit of a tradition by getting together in the afternoon, having our hair done at Dry Bar and then getting our makeup done. Last year, we went to Bare Minerals and this year, Benefit. Now, every makeup counter is different and while they all have similar products, the outcome can sometimes be hit or miss. I think Mandi ended up choosing Benefit because of convenience ie) close to our Dry Bar and also so that we could have our appointments done at almost the same time as each other.

The only product I’ve ever used from Benefit was the foundation in the center – Hello Flawless Oxygen Wow! liquid foundation and I’ve probably been on it for what feels like a year and a half or close to two years. The reason why I started using it was because before that I was using Chanel and that felt a bit expensive to me and a little too thick for my taste. This foundation, however, is exactly what it promises though – it’s light, hydrating, brightening, and lasts a very long time! And as if I couldn’t boast about it even more, it has SPF 25.

Since I bought this lipstick on the left, I have been obsessed. Every time I’m going out for a special occasion or for a night when I want to elevate my look a bit, I swipe this on. The packaging is adorable, but the color glides on well and lasts. I usually well do a quick glide of my vaseline and then 15 minutes later, put this lipstick on. I have this in Air Kiss – which is a sheer bubblegum.

The only downside about getting your makeup done at Benefit is that they make you buy three products. I’ve been to other makeup counters where you can choose to buy products if you like and I usually buy two out of courtesy, but three was a bit much for me because I really only needed two. I intended to buy the lipstick so I could re-apply the night of the holiday party and the foundation because it’s what I already use and I figured I would run low soon. So the product that I bought that I was the least excited about was the Hervana blush on the right. It was a great piece to complete my look, but it wasn’t something that I needed so I ended up giving this to my mom for Christmas. 🙂 The packaging for this is awesome though and it’s actually a great blush so I would still recommend it.

I would definitely consider going back to Benefit again to get my makeup done just because out of all the places I’ve ever had my makeup done, they did the best job. I don’t necessarily agree with the buy three products thing, but maybe that will change in the next year once I get more used to their products and use them more consistently.

Style

14 May 2017

Beauty for Breakfast Pt. 31

Alison Brod M+C weren’t aware how much they were going to be changing my life when they sent me these Caudalie products. I had just started getting into masks and after a fall travel season of flying back and forth from the west coast to the east coast and back again, I could feel my skin taking a toll. These are just a couple of the Caudalie products that I received and together, they go well hand-in-hand. I’m obsessed with this peeling mask that I use once a week for about 10 minutes before washing it off. It’s a very cooling cream that goes on smoothly and afterwards, my skin feels hydrated and a little bit brighter in the week when using it. I’m not known for using any toners, serums, or oils after a mask, but I do use this Caudalie lotion after the facial mask as a second step. I’ve never used a lotion quite like this and I love the way it smells and feels when I wear it to bed, but more importantly, how my skin feels when I wake up with it after it has been on the whole night. I now can’t imagine my life without these two products and even if I’m traveling, I’ll make sure to throw it into my carry-on so I can mask and lotion up wherever I’m at.