Thursday, September 19, 2013

Hera Skin Care Aquabolic Line Intro

If you have seen any Korean celebrity, one key trait that they all share in common (both male and female) is their impeccably flawless skin. Shin Min-Ah is the model for the Hera Aquabolic Line and her skin is absolutely beautiful! Like I said most Korean celebrities have gorgeous skin but to be chosen as a spokesperson for a skincare line means that your skin is absolutely flawless. Here is a picture of Shin Min-Ah:


The reason I chose this photo is because it is a photo of her in real life, no photoshop! Here is another picture, it may be touched up but regardless her skin has a dewy finish that actually glows! This picture alone makes her the envy of all women. It's not hard to understand why she was chosen to represent Hera Aquabolic Line.


Hera has two lines: Hera Aquabolic line is good for those probably up until the 30s while their Hera Age Defense line is probably more suitable for those 30+. I know some of you may think, "Well why don't I start using the age defense line in my early 20's and I'll be ahead of the game..." The Age Defense line is a lot more thicker and heavier on your face, not to mention more expensive. I tried using heavier age treatment skincare when I was younger and it just made me breakout. When you're younger your skin does not need such a rich and heavy product on your face and you may just end up clogging your pores. We tend to product more sebum in our adolescent to early adulthood. Remember as we get older our skin loses elasticity and is more prone to dry out. Make sure you use the skin care products that are suitable to your skin needs otherwise you might end up doing yourself a disservice.

 Kim Tae Hee is the spokesperson for the Age Defense Line. In case anyone is wondering she is 33 years old while Shin Min Ah is 29 years old. Don't you think these korean celebrities put J-Lo's amazing skin to shame? (I totally do!)



So... lets get back on track: Hera Aquabolic Skin Care Line. There are multiple products in this line and I will briefly go through the ones I've have tried. I'm probably going to go through each product on its own post or group two products together to give a thorough description of each.

1. Preperfection Serum
2. Aquabolic Balancing Water
3. Aquabolic Balancing Emulsion
4. Aquabolic Waterfall Serum
5. Aqualbolic Waterfall Cream
6. Aquabolic Eye Serum
7. Aquabolic Cell Essence Mist

 Yes there are plenty of products in this line! Just wanted to note that the Balancing Line is for those with combination to oily skin types (I have combination skin). They have another "Moisturizing" Line and that is for those with normal to dry skin types. I have samples of this line and  I find that it is better used during the winter months when the harsh brutal cold and the dry heated indoors make my skin super dry.

Hera Mineral BB Cream

Hera is a Korean brand under the mother company Amore Pacific Corporation. Some of you may have heard of Amore Pacific skin care as they have just recently released their American line to the major chain store Sephora. Amore (pronounced A-mor-reh) have high end, mid-range, and low end products to suit every shopper's budget. Amore Pacific, Sul-wah-soo (sold at Bergdorfs), and Hera are their high end line. Iope and Mamonde are their mid range lines. Most commonly known are Etude and Laniege which are on their lower end. I would say they are priced on par with like Revlon and Neutrogena.

I apologize for the mini informative session on Amore Pacific but now when you hear of these products at least you will know which mother company they are from!

Okay now on to the actual product: Hera Mineral BB Cream. Here is what the package looks like... I am using #2 Natural Beige. This product comes in 2 colors #1 Bright Beige and #2 Natural Beige. Natural Beige is the darker of the two and may be a tad bit light for my skin but it works after I set with powder. Just for reference my skin color is equivalent to MAC's NC 25. Lighter during the winter months and darker during the summer months.



Here is what the tip looks like



When you squeeze out the product it comes out a bit thinner consistency than some other BB creams. Also, something to note is if you just leave this BB cream laying around for while make sure to shake it so the mixture doesn't come out separate (oil and product). As you can see the product comes out already colored and it suits my yellow skin tone well, no grayish cast.



So I swiped it twice on my skin and you can see it starts to blend in. (Sorry you can see my thermal long-sleeve imprint on my hand, I just woke up from a nap... keke)



And here is what it looks like when I fully blend it in with my fingers.



The finish on this BB Cream actually dries into more of a slight powdery form. It leaves your skin feeling silky smooth and not sticky at all. The coverage is pretty light but can be slightly built up. If you have a lot of acne or scarring that you are trying to cover, this probably is not the BB Cream for you. I have slight pigmentation from previous acne but I find that this BB cream has sufficient coverage for what I'm looking for in a daily face BB Cream. I love that it has a very light finish and doesn't make me feel like I have a lot of product on my face. I put enough products on my face: serum, toner, lotion, sunscreen, and by the time I put on my face coverage the last thing I want is a heavy product. I have sensitive skin and this did not irritate my skin. One thing to avoid is trying more than one new product at a time, especially if you have sensitive skin like mine.

I really like the way this product smells although I can see how it may be too fragrant for some. It has a medium floral scent that will last for a while. This can be a good thing if you like the smell like me, but if you find it overly fragrant, it may annoy you.

There are benefits to mineral face products like this... think bare escentuals! It is supposed to provide your skin with moisturizing proponents as well as  naturally sourced minerals to keep your skin in "comfortable" condition. Did I mention it is SPF 40 as well?!

For application: I lightly dot this product all over my face lightly and then slowly blend it in. I start from inside my face and blend outwards using small circular motions. I use my regular go to powder with a soft powder brush to set my face and then I'm out the door.

I would definitely recommend this product! I would say the only  I noticed is that by the third or fourth hour I can definitely see the oil start to build up on my face. But that is nothing a bit of blotting paper and some light powder cannot fix.

BB Cream Rating: 3.75 out of 5 Stars!

Wednesday, September 18, 2013

Follow your passion....

Testing... testing... ah.... ah.... ah... is this mic on?!

I know I'm jumping into a saturated field of beauty blogs but I can't help myself... this is what I love and find obsessively interesting. I am a firm believer that beauty starts from within and I'm just trying to make sure I am the most beautiful I can be both inside and out. I love trying out new products and many products that I'm going to review may have been on the market for some time now. I'm not about buying the newest thing but am more about being the best informed consumer. I do a lot of research on the products that I wish to purchase before making the plunge because I feel that we should all be good stewards of our finances. I also try to make sure I take time out for myself to reflect and improve in areas that need development. My life motto is... "I'm a work in progress... just trying to find my way"

I feel that I have gathered quite a bit of knowledge through research and experience and I hope that you will find something of use on this site or at the very least I hope that I can provide some sort of entertainment.

Thanks for coming along with me...!

Sincerely,
E