Happy spring everyone! The day I started typing up this post we had hailstones and howling winds. Today I’m shivering in my winter layers listening to the rain, wishing I’d been less optomistic and ordered more heating oil. I can count the number of warm sunny days we’ve had on one hand, so much like me the weather sure has some catching up to do. But oh well. The evenings are brighter, there’s an occasional flash of blue sky most days now and the spring flowers are doing their best. We’re getting there!
I’ve seen a few of you doing monthly favourites post and they seem like a fun way to get posting regularly, not to mention ramble about random things that don’t nessesarily warrant a stand alone post. I did mean to get this up in the first week of April with the rest of you but hey, life. I can try again next month, right? Plus I’m lonely and rambling into the void helps a little. So, here we go!
I finally got round to spending that Christmas money I’d been holding on to and picked up some treats, first up is this VT X BTS The Sweet Special Edition Set. I don’t think I’ve ever written a post on cosmetics here, which is silly because I get a hell of a lot more excited about new skincare and beauty products than snacks! I guess since I can’t give you something like my Mac shade (it’s non-exsistent) and I’m not the biggest selfie fan I feel like I can’t really give a point of reference to make a review in any way useful, and just unboxing products isn’t nessesarily all that useful to see either. Hmm.
Anyway, what grabbed me about this set wasn’t just BTS being adorable (haha) but actually the cushion. I’ve had more luck with cushion foundations that any other type so I’m always happy to try out a new one, obviously the design is beautiful (am I strange to like collecting cushion cases?) but this part of Yesstyle’s description really sold it to me:
‘The cushion foundation is water-based and fitted with collagen water, hyaluronic acid and Soft Powder to hydrate skin while keeping it matte with its sebum-absorbing properties.’
My skin loves hyaluronic acid in skincare, so why not try it in make up too?
I’m amused at the branding on the sponge, is that just in case you forget it’s a collab while you’re applying it? (≧▽≦)
I’m really happy with how this looks on, not that I took any photos of that of course because that would be useful…but yeah, it’s good! Good colour match, didn’t break me out, coverage about the same as any cushion, nice dewy finish. It has the same skin plumping effect my HA skincare has which is exactly what I was hoping for. It may be a strange way of putting it but I think I look healthier than usual, less sleep deprived more natural glow. This is the first cushion I’ve used that doesn’t settle into my pores or the fine lines around my eyes over the course of the day, which is a big plus! It’s super lightweight as well, it felt like I’d just put on another layer of skin care rather than make up so it’s really comfortable to wear. I would absolutely buy a refill of this but I’m not sure the brand makes them, I’m guessing (and hoping) one of their many other cushions will be similar though? Guess I’ll investigate!
My second belated gift to self is a whole bunch of washi tape samples, because yeah sure I said I wouldn’t buy more stickers till I use up more of my current stash but washi tape doesn’t count right?
(I bought more stickers too. Why am I like this…థ౪థ)
I got these from Pandamoniann on Etsy after seeing Sunlit Sakura mention them in this post. I was super excited when I saw the Its’ Demo X Cardcaptor Sakura samples, I much prefer buying samples over full rolls partly because I’m far too indecisive to commit to buying full rolls, partly because I only really use washi in my Hobonichi and there’s only so much room in an A6 planner. I don’t see the point buying ten full rolls to use each one once or twice before another design grabs my eye, so samples it is!
Here’s a better look at the Its’ Demo X Cardcaptor Sakura tapes:
You can’t see the gold highlights all that well because I got lazy with the photography, but you get the general idea. The yellow one is my favourite for sure! I’m not as impressed at the pale pink one as I thought I would be as it looks a little washed out compared to the others, but it’s no big deal. Another plus to buying samples rather than full rolls!
There were SO many Pokemon Centre samples available it was hard to pick just a few, these are the ones I went for in the end:
The top two are from the Saiko Soda line, the middle is water Pokemon themed and the bottom two are from the Mix Au Lait line. I’ve been wanting the Saiko Soda and Mix Au Lait tapes for ages so I was really happy to find samples of them, they’re super cute! The water type tape I picked up just because water/ice Pokemon have always been my favourite type~
I’ll gladly buy from this seller again, they were great with communication and shipped everything out super fast (in a wonderfully decorated envelope too!). Along with a fab selection of washi tapes they also do kawaii mystery boxes, you bet I’m tempted (੭ˊᵕˋ)੭
March means Mother’s Day in the UK, these are the lovely gifts I recieved from my son this year. Not one but two handmade cards, how lucky am I! Plus chocolates, Jonghyun’s She Is album and a great big hug. I love how colour co-ordinated it all is, clearly he has learned the ways of aesthetic gifting well ^_~
There’s a drawing inside the card too, he doesn’t draw very often at school so I love when these little pictures appear! This one is him and I on the beach with the sea to the left, plants to the right and my face like a screaming sun planet in the sky because… reasons? Haha. It’s cute though ｡^‿^｡
Equally cute is the photocard inside the album, look at that fluffy hair! It makes me want to dye my hair again but it took so long to grow it out I just can’t (ᗒᗣᗕ)
Something that seems to have excited many of us this month is sakura season, it’s not really something people celebrate here but when your social feeds are flooded with all things sakura it’s hard not to get caught up in the hype. I love seeing all the photographs you guys share, keep snapping! Unfotunately the cherry blossoms around here have pretty poor timing and consistently bloom during the stormiest week they can, so when I look out the window what I see is this:
You’d think that was a greyscale image until you see the leaves. Ugh. Then a few days later all you see is damaged blossoms and sadness. Er, spring? Yay? It’s quite a far cry from the glorious blue sky, pink blossom shots doing the rounds!
It looked a little more like spring on this day, but there’s no escaping that cold grey cast:
It’s okay, I’ll keep trying and maybe this year some blossoms will survive long enough that I’ll get those insta-worthy photos. Wish me luck!
Finally, here’s a look at the monthly pages in my planner. I was going to do a pink/blue sakura theme for April but much like my plans to photograph the blossoms themselves I guess that went out the window and I ended up throwing a bunch of wagashi and some Cardcaptor tapes together. Was I hungry? Seems that way! I don’t really plan this out, far more fun to just throw stuff at the pages till they’re full (ﾉ≧∀≦)ﾉ*:･ﾟ✧
In case you’re wondering the Cardcaptor and wagashi washi tapes are both from Papergame (other than the Its’ Demo one of course), the stickers and sakura paperclip are from Stickii Club , although I can’t say if any of it is still available as they were all pulled from the stash, not purchased recently.
Hope you guys have had a good month, see you next time! （╹◡╹）๓
All the Ame 