Review: K-Palette Okuma Cover Control Concealer in 01 and 03

If you were to ask me to only choose one product from my makeup collection, I would definitely choose the concealer. Eyeliner and mascara are important, but a good concealer is ESSENTIAL. I have blemishes, I have acne scars and I have panda-like eyes - of course a concealer is always needed in my life. I'm always on the lookout for amazing concealers that conceal perfectly without breaking the bank. It's not an easy task though. I have been disappointed by high-end brands who claim to have the groundbreaking concealer that solves all known problems, but nope all those claims were just plain bullshit. 

It's especially difficult to find a concealer that works well when you are "blessed" with oily skin and are living in a tropical country. It's like a lose-lose situation - the first hour your skin looks good, the next hour your skin looks like ... a pool of oil. NOT GLAM OKAY. 

During my Japan graduation trip, I chanced upon the K-Palette Okuma Cover Control Concealer and I was extremely intrigued especially because the shades are not differentiated by colour, but by purpose. For example, type 01 is more for the fatigued working person while type 03 is more for a person who uses computers or other visual electronic devices frequently. I love this concept! However, loving a concept does not mean that the concealer will work well, and this is perfectly illustrated by this concealer. I hate to say this, but the K-Palette Okuma Cover Control Concealers have been a waste of my money. :( 

The K-Palette Okuma Cover Control Concealer retails for 950yen (before tax). That estimates to around S$11.90. Quite affordable!

Packaging: You probably have read the many times I go ga-ga over Japanese cosmetic product packagings. These concealers are no different. Pretty (and cute, look at the bear!!) packaging that catches your attention while looking through the myriad of products. I really like the bear paws haha.

One thing I like about these concealers is how much control you have over the amount of product that you want to use. The plastic tube packaging allows practicality and you can squeeze as little or as much as you want. I will advise that you don't apply straight to your skin though. Using your clean fingers to apply the product will be much more hygienic.

Shade: The K-Palette Okuma Cover Control Concealer in 01 tackles overall fatigue and it's perfect for those who don't sleep very much. It has a darker shade than 03 and I guess it's a more universal shade for girls living in tropical countries. The K-Palette Okuma Cover Control Concealer in 03 tackles problems concentrated on the eye area. If you stare at computers all day at work, then this is the shade for your eye area. The problem with 03 is that it's a really fair colour. To be honest, not many girls have porcelain skin. Shade 03 is too white for me and when I use it, I normally mix it with a darker shade concealer.

Coverage: It's amazing for the eye area. The amazingness ends there. I tried to use it on blemishes, and it didn't work. The concealer slides too much during application. I'd prefer it to be a little bit more gooey.

Application: I really dislike how the K-Palette Okuma Cover Control Concealer applies. It slides around too much and I think the formulation is quite oily. It's okay when using it on my eye area, but when I try to apply it on other areas, I just cannot apply it properly! I tried using my fingers, FAIL. I tried using a brush, FAIL. I just don't know how to work with this concealer. I really don't want to waste them, so what I do now is I mix them with a thicker concealer. It's much easier to apply and conceal when the concealer is not so watery.

Longevity: Ah, where do I start with this? I don't really want to come across as being too harsh, but to put it simply, I don't like the K-Palette Okuma Cover Control Concealer even more because it fails to stay on my face for more than an hour. Of course I can't solely blame the product; I have really oily skin so any product that has oil in it will look terrible very quickly. Moreover, Singapore is not a very weather-friendly country and this concealer just melts wayyyy too easily! I remembered that fateful day when I only used the K-Palette Okuma Cover Control Concealer in the morning before work, then when I reached my office, I checked my face and I was in shock. The concealer melts too easily and too obviously! I had patches of oily concealer all over my face! MAJOR FAIL.

I want to be fair to this concealer, so I will only advise those with dry or normal skin to get it. To be frank, it does a good job concealing dark eye circles and all other eye area problems.

Will I buy it again? Definitely not. I'm trying to use both up now by mixing them with other concealers that have thicker consistencies.

It's not nice when I have to rate a product negatively and I don't like writing negative reviews. But what to do? This concealer really just failed me badly :((

Negativity aside, enjoy the long weekend ahead guys! :)

Travel essentials - light makeup edition

This is the second part of my "travel essentials" post - all about the makeup that I bring with me when I'm traveling. 

However, because of my fussiness about makeup looks, this post will only be for the products that I bring along with me for trips that require no heavy or fancy makeup looks! For those looks, I tend to bring a much bigger makeup bag filled with a lot more products haha. 

I have a lot of makeup bags, but I prefer to use a clear one during traveling just so that I can save seconds when looking for the products. It's not a lot of time, but the seconds add up! 

My current go-to traveling makeup bag is this Banila Co. one which Eve got for me from S. Korea. It's not so huge but it can contain a lot of products! Also, it's clear and it's bright orange. I'm sold. 

• Sunscreen - I always use sunscreen before my actual foundation routine. I'm paranoid of getting old and the sunlight is no longer my friend at this age!
• Concealer - MUST HAVE. Without a concealer, I think I will just stay indoors all day. 
• Two-way foundation - I always use the ZA two-way foundation. I have used more expensive powders and I still think the ZA one is the best. I will use the sponge for under-eye area, then use the everyday minerals brush for all the other parts. This way, my face will not look cakey! 

• Tinted moisturiser - I completely forgot to include this on the above photo! I will use my tinted moisturiser before concealer! I'm running out of my Laura Mercier one and I'm sad. :( 
• Blush + Bronzer - I have too many blushes and too many bronzers, but when I'm traveling, I will always bring my elf Contouring Blush & Bronzing Powder because the packaging is not bulky and I get two products in one. I always apply them with my trusted elf blush brush!

I tend to bring more eye products. haha.

• Eyeshadow base - it's my habit to use an eyeshadow base because it makes whatever eyeshadow I apply last longer and smudge-proof. 
• A good neutral eyeshadow - the one that I like is Elianto's brown eyeshadow! Enough shimmer for everyday wear! 
• A good highlight eyeshadow - I MUST blend my eyeshadow to make it look more natural, so I will always bring a skin-shade eyeshadow. 
• Trusted pencil eyeliner - Urban Decay's 24/7 in Perversion (LOVE!) 
• Trusted felt-tip eyeliner - for the winged eyeliner look that I love so so so so very much. 

I don't really bring mascaras because I will be out and about, and hence I don't want my mascara to smear, melt or just create a mess lah.

The above products are must-brings for me, no matter where I go. In my makeup bag, these products will always be present. I will only add other things and never take the above products out. If I'm going to school or just going out in Singapore, I will normally just bring out my two-way foundation out.

Should I do another post on heavy makeup edition? I'm on the fence because I will be featuring many similar items and the post will be a bit boring then. :S Do tell me if you guys want to read a post on that though!

Have a good weekend and hope the two posts have been useful for your traveling plans! :)

Review: K-Palette 24H Real Lasting Eyeliner (1 Day Tattoo) in Super Black

The K-Palette 24H Real Lasting Eyeliner (1 Day Tattoo) in Super Black has been on my to-try list for the longest time ever. I have wanted it since it was launched in Singapore a few years back and back then the price stopped me from buying it (S$20+ for an eyeliner pen? No way!) and slowly I forgot about the existence of this product. 

Until I saw it again at BHG counters. The princessy-pink packaging caught my attention immediately and since there was a 20% off storewide for beauty products, I just grabbed it! 

The K-Palette 24H Real Lasting Eyeliner (1 Day Tattoo) in Super Black currently retails for S$19.90 at BHG and Watsons. 

Packaging: Such a cute packaging right?!?! I always thought K-Palette products were always decked in either black or red packaging, but this pink-purple bonanza is too cute! Maybe it's a special edition or collaboration special! TOO CUTE.

The K-Palette 24H Real Lasting Eyeliner (1 Day Tattoo) in Super Black promises:

• quick-drying application
• waterproof wear
• superb control and ease of drawing
• lasting and non-smudge wear

It is also indicated on the packaging that the eyeliner should NOT be used for inner eye lining (See point 6). For those who prefer a blacker eyeline, it's good to use a non-waterproof pencil/khol eyeliner because it glides more easily on the inner eye area and there is no long-lasting formula to dry the area out! 

I still prefer to not line my inner eye area if I'm wearing makeup for a long day because my eyes are quite sensitive!

Ingredients list

Brush design: Extremely fine and it has a low-medium flexibility. The brush is so fine that you can go for the thinnest of eyeliner looks to the extremely thick ones. Its flexibility is also of low-medium strength, and this is important for felt-tip eyeliners because if the brush is extremely flexible, you will need more control to prevent smearing.

Swatch taken with camera flash

Swatch taken with camera flash (one swipe of eye makeup remover)

Swatch taken with camera flash (Third swipe of eye makeup remover)

Swatch taken with camera flash (fourth swipe of eye makeup remover)

Waterproof? Yes. The K-Palette 24H Real Lasting Eyeliner (1 Day Tattoo) definitely proved to be very much waterproof. The swatch did not budge under running tap water or when I rub it with water.

Smudge-proof? Yes, provided you wait for the application to dry.

Quick-drying? It really depends on how many layers you are piling. One layer of this eyeliner instantly dries, so that's amazing. More layers will obviously mean a longer waiting time for the eyeliner to dry, but the waiting time is minimal and less than average felt-tip eyeliners and very much faster than your average liquid eyeliners.

Swatch taken with camera flash (The K-Palette 24H Real Lasting Eyeliner (1 Day Tattoo) in Super Black compared with Urban Decay 24/7 pencil in Perversion)

Pigmentation: Is it Super Black? I'm not very convinced about the proclamation of the eyeliner being of "Super Black" pigmentation. When I compare it to my Urban Decay 24/7 eye pencil in Perversion, it seems darker but that's because the K-Palette 24H Real Lasting Eyeliner (1 Day Tattoo) has a shine to it and Perversion is matte. If you look at the above photos, the swatches didn't look that black at all. Overall, Im quite disappointed with the pigmentation.

However, that doesn't mean that I'm going to completely throw it aside. The K-Palette 24H Real Lasting Eyeliner (1 Day Tattoo) does make eyeliner application much easier, especially if you want the cat-eye look. Hence, usually I will use a trusted pencil eyeliner to line my eyes first without winging it out, then I will use this eyeliner to create the winged look. Just like the photo below! :)

Longevity: Lasts a long, long, long, long, long time. Tattoo means TATTOO. I had this eyeliner applied on top of Urban Decay 24/7 Eye Pencil in Zero and the combo lasted me a crazy 16 hours. Usually, the UD alone will start to smudge 10 hours in, but with the addition of the K-Palette 24H Real Lasting Eyeliner (1 Day Tattoo), it lasted so much longer, and there's no smudging!! The above photo really looked like I just did my makeup but trust me (plus evidence from the tired and reddish eyes) this was taken at around 1130pm! AMAZING!

Will I buy it again? So far, the K-Palette 24H Real Lasting Eyeliner (1 Day Tattoo) has been quite a good companion to my other pencil eyeliners, and I use it every single day without fail. I'm quite confident that I'll buy it again just because it lasts so so long!! It disappoints in terms of pigmentation but the longevity of the product triumphs that!!

Have a good weekend everyone! :) Hope this post has been useful!