Tea Time Part IV

Has it really been more than a year since my last Tea Time post? Where did all the time go? I've hoarded a bunch more of teas since, and that's with several that I'd totally forgotten to take pictures of before tearing into and subsequently tossing the packages.

***Disclaimer: I'm *not affiliated* with any of these tea brands or vendors. Just sharing the goodies I enjoy is all.

My first encounter with Ahmad Tea was through A., my Japanese-school classmate back in 2012 in Yokohama. A. is Iraqi, born and raised in Baghdad but had met her Japanese husband S. via an online chatroom.Their story belongs in a book and movie--Far East meets Middle East, he converted to Islam and all the high jinks ensued--but I'll leave it to her to tell this story.

Suqqu Bright Up Lipstick Part IV

Over the past several months, on two separate occasions I stumbled upon Suqqu Bright Up Lipsticks 01 桃色 (Momoiro) and 05 花杏 (Hanaanzu) via E(vil)bay and was more than happy to add them to my collection ^.^

01 I bought together with a backup of 03 薔薇色 (Barairo), and 05 bought together with EX-29 光絹織 (Koukiori) and Creamy Glow Lipstick Moist EX-10 蕾珠 (Tsubomidama), which I'll review later.

All pictures taken in natural light without flash.

Opera Lip Tint Part II

This past spring, for Valentine's Day Opera released two limited edition Lip Tints 07 Pink Fraises and 08 Burgundy Kiss, and they made it available for just one weekend (or was it just one day?) and only at their Omotesando shop.

I was beyond frustrated. There's more to Japan than just Omotesando and this campaign snubbed the rest of the country, much less those abroad like me. But of course, exclusive campaigns like this work like a charm. I heard from fudejapan (not affiliated) these sold out the same day at the shop, with the rest being hawked on Amazon JP for unbelievable markups, think 7-8,000yen each (retail was 1,600yen!). Urgh. Forget it.

Then a couple of months later, Opera did it again, this time releasing limited editions 09 Sakura Petal and 10 Plum Pink. Interestingly enough, these didn't sell out as fast, which should have been my clue something was off. But nope, like an idiot I fell for it. I'd seen some online photos (when will I learn to stop trust online photos, goddammit!) and thought they were pretty.

All pictures taken in natural light without flash.

Celvoke Voluntary Basis Eye Palette

In the spring of this year, Celvoke released a new and permanent range of quads called the Voluntary Basis Eye Palette (hmm, voluntary basis as opposed to what, exactly?). Unlike the previous Voluntary Eye Palettes (which I don't see these online anymore--what happened?), the new palettes have all new and unique shades, as opposed only 1 palette-unique color and the other 3 picked from their singles lineup. From online photos, palette 03 Purple caught my eyes though and that was what I went with.

All pictures taken in natural light without flash.

Maquillage Dramatic Rouge Part VI

Yep, I'm still at it with Maquillage Dramatic Melting Rouge, exploring color after color in search of gems like the first four I bought. This time, I picked up PK346 Spicy Pink, RD742 Gentle Red, and RS329 Rose Rendezvous.

All pictures taken in natural light without flash.

Lipstick Queen Saint Lipsticks Part VI

During a sale last winter, I picked up backups for a few of my Lipstick Queen favorites, including Medieval in The Pretty Pair (Saint Pinky Nude went to mum-in-law), Bete Noire Possessed Sheer, and Butterfly Ball Moment. While at it I also spotted Saint Rust on sale and nabbed it since I don't have that color.

All pictures taken in natural light without flash.

A few months later, LQ released a new color in the Saint formula, Saint Plum, which I couldn't resist and bought it together with Mornin' Sunshine and Queen Bee.

Cosme Decorte AQMW Rouge Glow

After the Cosme Decorte AQMW Makeup Coffret VI, I picked up several more of the Rouge Glows in the colors OR250 Be Together, PK850 First Love, RD450 Heartfelt Letter, RD457 Alluring Kiss, and RO654 Lady Glam. I picked these colors based on Cosme.net swatches--still haven't learned my lesson, nope--so I did realize these could be hit or miss.

All pictures taken in natural light without flash.

Ole Henriksen Pick Me Up Face Mist

Two weeks into this 207mL spray bottle of Ole Henriksen Pick Me Up Face Mist and I'm still kind of on the fence with it. I actually bought two bottles and gave one to mum-in-law. She said she liked it a lot and finished it up in a few weeks!

Algenist Genius Ultimate Anti-Aging Vitamin C+ Serum

Almost done with this 10mL/0.3fl. oz. (in 10 packets) of Algenist Genius Ultimate Anti-Aging Vitamin C+ Serum so here's a quick post for it.

Konnyaku Sabon Facial Cleansing Soaps

Two whole years after I received these Konnyaku Sabon Facial Cleansing Soaps, at long last I opened one up to use. Their online shop has a bunch of varieties categorized by city, some even come in a couple of different scents. The one I'm using is the Tokyo Ginkgo Extract in Lavender scent.

Cosme Decorte AQMW Makeup Coffret VI

Despite the Cosme Decorte AQMW Eye Glow Gem creasing on me, I do like the four colors I have and am experimenting with a primer that will work with them. Either way, they got me a little more curious with the brand, specifically the lipsticks. Question is, where does one get a good sampling of a brand's cosmetics in one set or kit? Answer is, their yearly makeup coffret, where else?

Luckily for me, the AQMW Makeup Coffret VI released for the 2017 holidays season had everything I could have wanted and would actually use (important!), including a Rouge Glow PK861 Yours Forever, a Lasting Gel Eyeliner BR303, a cream Blush & Highlighter, with the star of the coffret being an Eye Glow Gem PK881, all limited edition colors. Just perfect. Sold.

All pictures taken in natural light without flash.