East Coastin' :)

So this past weekend from the 17th-21st (originally planned to the 20th but oh well) I was in NYC :) I was so excited. I Haven't gone somewhere strictly for leisure in a very, very, long time. Years probably. But So..I think I'm going to chronicle this somewhat a la xppinkx style. Lots of food pictures! Haha I shot a lot of vid footage because you guys know I'm more of a youtuber than a blogger

Broke my right thumb nail right before take off....Lame. I know. Ive only recently been able to figure out how to grow my nails out...that and I wanted my nails to be perfect/pretty. Clearly a great start to the trip! lol *I'm holding the piece that broke off*

Had a Connecting flight in the ATL airport...Look! They were like mini hotel rooms that had a bed, wireless Internet etc and you could nap or work on your stuff in between flights :) The airport also had trashcans that automatically sorted out and compacted recyclables *fancyfancy*

So then I landed. And he already knew I was hungry so...off to be fed! Lol :) I hadn't eaten all day, and for me that's just not acceptable...I eat 4-5x a day. So I was once again...really really hungry.

Joe's Shanghai

13621 37th Ave

Flushing, NY 11354

Yummmyyy :D You bite inside the dumplings and all this soup and beefy goodness comes out. Its amazing when sprinkled with a little bit of Chinese dark vinegar :) Think Din Tai Fung's Juicy pork dumplings but much much bigger!

Went to Ten Ren's (one of my favorite boba chains) in Flushing...This is kind of when I realized NY and Socal boba are NOT the same. Lol...I'm guessing its just different tastes? In socal we only use those rounded tops if you're getting a slushy drink...but everywhere we went they always use those rounded tops..I'm always paranoid that it'll fall off! haha

That and the tea was different, even from the other Ten Rens I've been to...and the boba isn't as chewy or sweet. Hmm :[ haha So then after this I had a hardcore food coma and compensated for all the sleep I hadn't got. Woke up and then off to dinner :)!

Sea Thai Restaurant and Bistro

114 N 6th St

(between Wythe Ave & Berry St)

Brooklyn, ot :)!

Our seat right next to the mini lake inside...It was the last seat and so my seat was to the wall and we had a cute dark corner :) Best seat in the house in my opinion =] Haha even if the wait was 1+ hours

My pad thai and his Drunken Man's Noodle...They were both actually really delicious with generous portions. I ate some the next day! haha :) Some of my favorite food from the weekend

Day 2- Saturday

So all we did was go and eat. We went to Chinatown and had some horrible Chinese food (M cafe or something...his friend rec'd it for late dim sum but it was a total fail LOL) but I actually have a very poor digestive system and had to retire early right as we got to Soho because my stomach was hurting me so badly x.X So I only have pictures from dinner. I have a OOTD video at this restaurant too! Use the bathroom and feel the towels...I remember the first time I went to a Ruth's Chris I wanted to steal all the paper towels. Maybe its my Chinese side *probably* haha but they're seriously amazingly soft and feel like fabric!

So we opted for the prix-fixe menu. Ruth's Chris came out with this...I think three or so years ago? I forget. Maybe 4..regardless ITS SUCH A GOOD DEAL :) They have a 39.99/person and 49.99/person option. You get your choice of starter (soup, salad etc), main course, a personal portion side (which is big enough to share still lol) and dessert. Love love love. Ruth's Chris is one of my FAVORITE steak places, and my favorite chain steakhouse. The steaks are delicious and come out on 400 degree plates (theyll burn you if you touch em!) that keep your steak nice and hot :D

I love hot foods HOT and colds food SUPER cold...Ill re-heat soup 2-3 times when I eat it :x so...Ruths Chris = perfection to me :)

I chose the Cesar's Salad. Nom NOm. I love these :D ill never make them myself though because store-bought dressings are never as good as the restaurant's I feel. And they're so bad for you anyways. haha

My filet mignon with shrimp on top...delicious. Drooling right now thinking about it! Medium rare...just how I like it :D With a side of mashed potatoes (which I also highly recommend...thats what I always eat here with my steals :) )

A petit flan for dessert! So delicious..and I usually dont like flan LOL. But it was so yummy, eat the fruit with it at the same time and it's heaven.

Day 3- Sunday

So sad :[ My supposed-to be last day. On the way to Soho..finally snagged a pic of all those go-kart police carts. Seriously. Id feel less than hardcore with this...o_O But they look fun to drive...hmm...lol

Anyways we got tired of driving around 3+ hours looking for parking, this is kinda when I gave up and was down for public transportation and parked his car at one of those pay parking structures (which amazes me how necessary these are in NY..and expensive x.X) . Secretly Im kind of afraid of it...I just hear a lot of horror stories. And I've never been on the NY subways but after I went on I LOVED it. Because its so freakin efficient! It was my most productive day because we wouldn't spend hours looking for parking :) excellent

Sakura

Cant find the address of this...but it wasn't that great anyways. We just kinda walked in..but the sushi was nicely presented and neat...so eh *shrug*

I got a spicy tuna roll *my faveee!* and a salmon cucumber roll..Thought the salmon was a bit slimy and the spicy tuna kind of underwhelming but oh well. Edible..but forgettable

Took a picture with a cop in the middle of Times Square :) LOL Shoulder taken one with elmo =[

So We were supposed to eat Dinner at Ippudo after a long day of shopping..but the wait was NINETY MINUTES. Holy cow...But tiffany said it was bomb so we decided to run over to St Marks which was nearby for some boba... bubble tea to you east coasters! lol

Probably my favorite boba all weekend :) But Im not gunna lie...I prefer socal boba. Lol..Its just different. In all fairness i'm sure you guys find our boba too sweet and too soft/chewy...hmm. Ill have to ask him when he visits lol :) Make him try it. I almost always get milk tea with boba if its a new place since I feel like milk tea is the staple.

Ippudo NY

65 4th Ave
New York, NY 10003

Tried the spicy pork buns...Its essentially a saucy savory pork slice with some lettuce and a large Chinese Peking Duck bun around it. 8 Dollars for two. Kinda expensive but it was good...but I couldnt help but feel like it was a bootleg version of peking duck! But it WAS yummy...not totally worth it but i'd prob get it again if I went -_- because I like the novelty of things...they had this sliced cucumber with vinagrette drizzled over it that was popular too...Imma get that one next time! :x

I got the Akamaru ramen (since thats another of the highly praised items) it was REALLY good. Way more overpriced than socal ramen (which is good and very cheap) but in all fairness the ambience of this place is nice...and its really hyped up so I guess that kinda helps too. The server was VERY friendly as well :)

The only thing I didn't like about the place...You're seated at these long communal tables. I was next to the wall so I was glad I wasn't sitting next to anyone except the bf but I don't like looking up and seeing someone else facing me 2 ft away...Its just really awkward. However if you have larger groups of 5 ish they do have personal booths which is nice :)

Mmm Green Tea ice cream for dessert! My favorite :) I love green tea ice cream from japanese places, I always get it :x Small touches like cute little spoons make me happy too...*shrugs*

It WAS good but I do think it is a bit overhyped. I'd still probably go back since it was one of the better places we went to all weekend =] I think I just kind of realized at this point socal/east coast don't have the same tastes in food.

Pam's horrible influence -_- LOL
The lashes I bought at the Face Shop I wore the whole weekend. I REALLY loved these :) I had originally planned to do a smokey eye everyday (who else am I going to get done up for?) rather than the normal liner...but girls in the East Coast just dont wear much makeup. So I ditched the idea and kept it how I normally do. But wore these too :) I really really did like these.
Bath bombs! Sigh...gave in to the lush mania..

The Face Shop haulage...Two sets of lashes (the shisem ones are TDF ;_;) face masks, pore strips and those pimple healers that pam got. Which I pretty much had the same results with, it helps enough with inflammation to keep them around. :) I HATED the vita K mask...made my face seriously burn and it was HUGE. Horrible fitting.

Day 4- Last Day...or....was it o_o

1111315 Queens Blvd

Flushing, NY 11375

I had really wanted to get dim sum all weekend...it's a cute cantonese thing to do lol :) It was really good actually. Mmm..tea is healing. Chrysanthemum is my favorite since it doesn't get bitter like how Jasmine tends to because it's made with flowers and not tea leaves

I was fascinated by this...sriracha and hot mustard. o_O Now when you eat dim sum you generally get hot mustard and chinese chili paste/oil stuff...but not sriracha! haha kind of made me laugh...is this an East Coast thing as well or not?

They had a whole station where they had baskets of fresh chinese vegetables waiting to be cooked MM! Chinese broccoli is my personal favorite :) with some oyster sauce...*dies*

So here is supposed to be the end of it all. Long story short..Delta really screwed up that day. I couldn't print my ticket at the kiosk and there were only two tellers working for a 100+ people line. One teller didn't help anyone in the 3 hours I was waiting there because one large family was trying to fly together (parents + seven kids...seven o_o) so it was really only one teller. EVERYONE in line missed their flights. They made me miss my flight, miss the standby and were trying to get me to pay almost 500 dollars for a new ticket. So I cursed a bit sucked it up and went back to hang out with the boo to search up other options. I ended up choosing an American Airlines flight for the next day at a much more reasonable price.

Sago Cafe

39-02 Main Street
Flushing, NY 113

He already figured out the key to my heart. Food and boba <3 style="text-align: center; ">

Snack food...because Im an emotional eater. LOL I liked the calamari best :) but wouldn't go back or recommend it.

♥

Sigh. And thats it. That took forever...blogspot is seriously evil. Changes your font, deletes your pictures, has a horrible uploading system...Idk how you blog ladies do it! haha...This took much longer than I'd like but oh well. Until next time =]!

So 2ne1 came out with a new mv the other day called 'clap your hands'

theyve always been one of my favorites :) They're just so...fierce LOL

But anyways I originally wanted to do just a Park Bom look. But for the LIFE of me couldnt get a single still shot of her eyes. Just couldn't do it

Park Bom...Seriously sat there for like ten minutes trying to get a good pic of her eyes. Wasnt happening

So this was my take on it...just kinda rolled em all up in to one LOL. The horrible lighting was killing me though, it makes you look so sallow ;_; and gross. Meh. But I wanted to get this up but here are pics:

Tried to make this one super saturated like how they are in the MV and it didnt really turn out right *scratches head* LOL

To make it fully in to Sandara's look just put a baby pink nudeish gloss over the concealed lips and there you go :D Its much more her look than Bom's anyway me thinks.

Ive slept 7 hours for the past 3 days..gah. I think im down to like 98 pounds too cause I havent been able to eat Im so stressed out. At least my vacay is soon...friday! Im so excited aAHHHHHH!!!! Halal cart here I come :D

And sushi and thai food and steak and yea. :)

Why I like animals more than people

Im not going to lie, if you havent noticed: I'd rather have pets than friends. Not to say I dont have friends LOL but animals have never let me down. Your dog, cat, bird whatever...will love you regardless of how you look, how much money you have, or how much you can give them, and all they ask in return is love. ON the rare occasion they DONT like you (which...come on happens sometimes) they wont pretend they like you when they dont, they wont tell the other dogs how much they dislike you and theyll (generally speaking) leave you alone if you do the same.

Now today is 9/11, I know everyone's been talking about that. I remember how young I was..I think I was in 8th grade at the time? We were in Math for gifted students (yea, I was a lowkey nerd. Did I tell you I got a 4.6 in high school at one point?) and we were watching the news when the towers came down and all those lives were lost. My teacher said to us that that day would change the rest of our lives.

The craziest story I heard was from one man who I was lucky enough to meet who had worked at around the 71st level of one of the towers. He was completely blind, and went to work everyday with his seeing eye dog named Dorado. When the planes crashed and people were running past, he knew that he had very little chance of survival so he let his dog go and ordered him to leave, hoping that he would save himself. Dorado stayed by his side nudging his hand and grabbed his sleeve and walked him down 71 flights of stairs and he survived (they were a hundred yards from the towers when they collapsed). Funnily enough, Dorado wasn't alone. I discovered there were TWO dog heros that day, Roselle and her owner who worked the 78th floor also reached safety. I've always thought animals we're so much smarter than people thought them to be. They always understand when youre sad, and somehow they always know how to make you feel better. I feel so lame saying this, but how many people do you know with such a pure and selfless heart?

Its just depressing how much negativity there is in the world these days. My friend mike said to me, "Man, girls could rule the world if they weren't so busy tearing each other down all the time" and I completely agree. Haven't you heard about the pastor from florida who wanted to burn the Qu'ran? HELLOOOO dumb dumb. Religions aren't full of hate, people are. You hear so much talk about war and people dying...it all seems so archaic and unreal. Its amazing to think that we can make planes fly in the air, live in outer space and perform open heart surgery but we cant find a peaceful resolution to our problems and differences.

Okay..thats it. Enough rantage, I just wanted to take a bit of time to remember all those lives lost that day and families that were affected. Its sad to think that after everything thats happened nothing has changed. Im actually visiting NY myself soon...its my first real vacation in years. The last time I went to NY I got bit by a wild squirrel in the middle of central park and spent the weekend in the ER getting rabies shots. I was trying to save it because I thought it was hurt...my 8 year olf self was capable of such things y'know LOL. To make matters worse, I knew once it happened I was in big doodoo so I tried to rinse away the blood so my mom wouldnt see it with a big dirty puddle of water on the floor (Imagine my chinese mom seeing blood gushing out of a wound on my finger and me futilely trying to rinse it away with NY dirty puddle water...hahahha) . LMFAO ahh...the good ol' days. So if you guys could recommend any great restaurants or shopping/scenic spots to hit up id greatly appreciate it.

I already have a list of the places I wanna go :)

-Times Square (for inglots and the crazy sephora namely LOL)

-MAC PRO store ( I wanna get cantaloupe blush dangit...)

-Serendpity's

-Spot Dessert Bar in St Marks

-Ruths chris (my FAVE steakhouse omg, the prix fixe menu is such a bomb deal too!)

-Ktown/Jtown/Ctown for asian cosmetics/skincare ish

-The Face Shop

-Central park (this time sans squirrels)

-Lush (I want the sex bomb bath bomb! haha...even though the commercial is horrible)

and thats all I can think of for now..hmm

and the following because of Tiffany's Recs: Shake shack, Joe's Shanghai, Kunjip and the Halal cart! hahaha

Take care guys, and cherish those around you

Life is so short- its really a shame people spend 90% of theirs being pissed off at someone else

love, Jackie Chu

PS. Thank you Alice for your package which I received yesterday =] Alice was the winner of my sedu giveaway and shes such a sweetheart she sent me some stuff back

[There was an extra missha mask but my sister stole it -_-]

"A dog has no use for fancy cars or big homes or designer clothes. Status symbol means nothing to him. A waterlogged stick will do just fine. A dog judges others not by their color or creed or class but by who they are inside. A dog doesn't care if you are rich or poor, educated or illiterate, clever or dull. Give him your heart and he will give you his. It was really quite simple, and yet we humans, so much wiser and more sophisticated, have always had trouble figuring out what really counts and what does not. As I wrote that farewell column to Marley, I realized it was all right there in front of us, if only we opened our eyes. Sometimes it took a dog with bad breath, worse manners, and pure intentions to help us see."- john grogan

PS. I tweeted this already but in case you dont follow me on twitter...heres the lush video for the sex bomb bath bomb...Idk. It doesn't scream sexy to me. LOL

EOTD I Guess... o_o

[Because I never do these things...]

[I didnt crimp the lashes and my lashes together so thats why it looks kinda (floaty) but this is why you crimp them together (or some of you may prefer to put on mascara and blend them but I feel like thats a waste) ]

A basic neutral cut crease :) I feel bad cause on the occasion I DO wear eyeshadow...I feel like its always the same or in the same style. But upon experimenting more today it made me remember why I never switch up my eyeshadow-its because it makes my eyes uglier when theyre open. Le sigh. Unfortunately I am vain and would rather look better than be artistic

but in case youre interested:

I used....

MAC's soft ochre paint pot as a base all over the lid

Sephora's white eye kohl on my lid as a light base to make 'kitten' pop a bit more

MAC's Blanc Type for highlight (242 brush)

Stila's Kitten on the Lid (239 brush)

MAC's Embarked in the crease and under the eye (226 for crease and 242 for under the eye)

MAC's brown script to blend out the embarked and warm it up a bit (226 brush)

Loreal's Lineur Intense in Carbon Black

Sonia Kashuk Full Glam Lashes

and thats it :) IDK tho..I feel like I should switch it up sometimes tho o_o mmm.

Theres a fine line between being constructive and being critical- Just sayin'.

So here is another popular topic! Since I probably won't be doing anything exciting until my NYC trip, maybe I could just rip up more controversial topics har har har. So on youtube one of the things I notice most commonly is what I *hope* is simply misunderstanding between "beauty gurus" (I use this term lightly...I just think its weird IDK) and their subscribers. Lots of harsh, brash words are exchanged throughout the comments section of videos. Basically, at the end of it they both think each others a bitch LOL.

Most of this results from comments that the viewers (and Im going to assume they're just trying to be constructive) say to the youtuber, which sparks the harsh confrontation. I can think of some about myself that are common: my hair flip (sorry its not going away deal with it haha) the rate at which I speak, and most recently, the auto-play of music on my blog LOL.

Who posted the comments (2 people for you nosier folks) is irrelevant but basically it was just said that auto play music is annoying buahaha. I'm not upset or trying to call people out which is why I deleted the comments before posting this: you know if I was i'm the type to do it explicitly, but it was a good opportunity to start on this post which I've been meaning to do for awhile

So coming from my (a youtuber's) perspective:

This is what itches my butt about it: youtube is a service, not only that Youtube is a FREE service. In the case of my blog: its MY blog. Its going to reflect me, and in all honesty id rather make videos because blogspot is a pain in the butt BUT I maintain my blog for two reasons: 1. because I want my viewers to see that i'm not a dim-witted air headed biatch and I can talk about things completely unrelated to makeup/beauty. And two, I can have product information on here that would be difficult to do a video on (like that Shiseido pureness post). That post took me almost 2-3 hours (okay I was watching TV too >.<) to complete, it takes two seconds to turn off the music on someone's blog. It kind of felt like a slap in the face after all that work I put in to it. I really get a LOOTT of questions about the pureness line, and I thought I was going out of my way talking about something I didnt even use anymore (had to go back find prices, names etc) and you cant just turn the music off my blog x.X? I, for one, clearly like the music on my blog :) harhar Its one of the only redeeming qualities to me about blogspot honestly (which btw is annoying as FACK to upload to) I cant include music in my videos due to copyright issues; so that is why I insist on my music here. Even in my myspace and xanga days, I always had music on my page.

I can't stand plenty of peoples music on their blogspots LOL but its their blogspot, so if i want the info on the page they have to offer, turning off some music isn't a huge inconvenience I think. Thats how I feel about everyone's mannerisms, music etc. If I want the information they have to offer, Ill watch their videos, listen to their music, ignore their "ummmss" ...and suck it up. Because im getting that information and entertainment for free, and if its too much to handle, theres always that [x] box at the top of the right hand of any window (it works, and its satisfying, you leave that page darn it! Go you LOL).

Now on the side of the viewer:

Now this kinda deals with the "hater" post but its a little bit different! I know not everyone that posts is trying to attack you, a lot of times they REALLY think their suggestions would improve the quality of your product (be it your videos, blog etc) or they're just trying to make what they think to be a harmless observation [common ones are: you look tired, you look different, your skin looks bad, your eye looks weird etc]. but just because were on youtube, doesn't mean we don't have feelings and don't get insecure, and in the midst of mass replying to comments a lot gets lost in translation. And I know sometimes youtubers are too hasty, youtube as I mentioned has been a huge learning experience for me. I try really hard now to calm down when I see a comment that makes me mad, and try to see it from their perspective and REALLY decide if people we're trying to be insulting or not. Because sometimes, people are really just trying to help. But other times... people are just trying to be an ass (come on! you've SEEN some of the awful things people say right?) but just like how I think people on youtube (including myself!) can be too hasty, I do think sometimes comments could be worded better.

"No offense" first off, is always insulting. No offense you look_____ NEVER softens the blow. So don't say it, because obviously it's offensive.

If you think someone looks better another way, you can say "I really like how you look with straight hair :)" not "your hair looks ugly like this"

If you think someone looks tired, you can say "you look like you haven't been sleeping well, are you okay? :[" which makes it clear that you're NOT attacking them and are making a harmless observation. Some people may consider this ass-kissing. But please keep in mind you probably don't know the people you watch/read, so unless you comment often they don't know and generally don't assume that you're honestly concerned, trying to be helpful or curious. We get attacked ALL the time and the pressure to look good and be perfect is CONSTANTLY on us. It definitely comes with the territory, but we get insecure just like anyone else. We're human, we get zits, we get eye bags, we ramble, we're not perfect.

Im not innocent of having never lashed out unnecessarily, but I have been trying to get better. I've definitely mis-interpreted a few comments in my time, and felt pretty bad when I realized I shocked the innocent person commenting (to you guys, sorry if I didn't say it :[ I do try and apologize when Im in the wrong and generally make amends with people, there shouldn't be any recents though.)

So basically my whole point is, I think we should remember why everyone goes on to youtube in the first place-for the love of beauty. I think its just kinda disheartening to see how negative a place youtube has become. Every youtuber was at one point a viewer too, so we've been in those shoes. But I honestly think both youtubers and viewers alike are at fault. Youtubers should not so quickly think we are being attacked, grow some tougher skin and not dwell on it but people who choose to watch our videos should also put our feelings in to consideration.

"But she'd/you/they'd be nothing without us" And I agree, youtubers are just people (just like celebrities are just people) and are nothing without our viewers, but asking someone to change who they are because you (your one person) doesn't enjoy it, honestly doesn't make a whole lot of sense to me. I'm not saying never offer a friendly suggestion, but just keep in mind theres a fine line between being constructive and being critical. And as a favor to me and others, try to word it in a way that there will be no misinterpretation. Even if I were to change said habits that few (read:the minority) of people find annoying, there are much more people that have an odd fascination with the way I flip my hair, hate slow talkers and who routinely download all the songs they hear on here. My point is, I can't win 'em all, so I don't even bother trying. I've said this many times before, theres just no making everyone happy so its much better to be yourself. If someone really bothers me, I don't watch their videos. Thats it. No drama, no confrontation and I can find other people I like just fine. [If you don't like the way someone is and you continue watching their videos and are upset by it, whose the dumb dumb? No ones forcing you to watch.] And if I should be in the unfortunate situation that no one else has the information I want and then force myself to watch said videos- I suck it up, clench my teeth, and imagine how pleasant it'd be to gauge out my eyeballs to the sound of their voice, excessive "umms" and continue watching.

PS. However I do understand that not everyone likes rnb and apologize for placing my media player on default volume and so far down my page. I have now lowered the default volume (which I just found out you can do btw :D ) and moved my media player to the top right of the page so that the "off" switch is now more conveniently located LOL. Enjoy.

Love, Jackie :)

Feel free to discuss, agree...disagree... I just wanted to get that out there and I encourage everyone (myself included) to suck it up

okay? okay! ^________^ V

"I'd rather be hated for who I am, than loved for who I am not."

Shiseido's Pureness Line Review

So you guys know I'm in love with Shiseido skincare :) White lucent is my staple, I'd have a freakin cow if they ever discontinued it, but I get asked a LOT about Pureness which is Shiseido's acne/mattifyiing line. This is completely understandable (1) because im a clear Shiseido lover (2) because many of my viewers are teens, helloooo puberty/hormones and acne prone skin :D and (3) I believe of all the Shiseido lines, it is the cheapest and most affordable.

My skin / experience:

I have incredibly oily skin but I've never had severe acne. A few occasional pimples but nothing bad- but keep in the mind the severity of your acne is irrelevant to how a product will work for you. You with a few pimples may find a product awful/useless while your friend with SEVERE acne may be totally cleared up by the same thing, I always stress that skincare is individual-but its always good to hear people's experience because skincare is an expensive gamble.

To answer your questions, YES I have and did use Pureness from the time I was 14-16. If anything in Shiseido sticks out to me as being not worth it, its definitely the Pureness line. You guys know im not crazy about Tsubaki haircare either-but at least MANY people are. Many of my friends have had great results with it- so I still think it has its merits. But with pureness- out of everyone I know that's used this it's pretty universal that this line does little to NOTHING

I no longer have any of these products (for obvious reasons), but I've used most this line. I don't want to do a video on it because I can't imagine how boring it'd be with me talking for [x] amount of minutes straight with no products to show LOL so for those of you that are interested, ill list em all here.

Cleansers: Out of everything from the set, the cleansers were my favorite. Keep in mind though that these cleansers have NO anti-acne properties, they contain no salicylic acid or benzoyl peroxide. [But even if they did, its generally agreed that acne medication put in to your cleanser is useless since it does not stay on your skin]

Pureness Foaming Cleansing Fluid- $21.00

This had a texture similar to Biore's ice cleanser or Neutrogena's fresh foaming cleanser (looks/feels just like it!). It's a creamy milky goopy fluid that foamed when mixed with water. I personally didn't like it because I like a bit of a deeper squeaky-clean feeling after I wash my face. But if you prefer VERY GENTLE cleansers that dont feel stripping then this one is a good choice- think Philosophy's Purity in terms of gentleness. Much like that but a little more foaming.

Pureness Deep Cleansing Foam- $21.00

This was my favorite of the two cleansers :) I think because I'm so oily, I prefer a cleanser that gives me a squeaky clean feeling =] So this was my preference. Definitely gives you a deep-down clean, but some people may find it to be too stripping (and a little harsh, it has these little blue microbeads) -you definitely should use a moisturizer after this one because your skin will feel tight.

Pureness Refreshing Cleansing Sheets Oil-Free Alcohol-Free $17.00 (30 sheets...only. -_-)

Another of my favorites :) Really light clean and refreshing- but keep in mind wipes are NOT meant to replace regular face-washing! I really loved these, but they're not worth 17 dollars for only 30 sheets, drugstore ones don't do any worse/better of a job so save your money (unless you're a baller and wanna feel sweet with Shiseido face wipes LOL)

Toners / Acne Fighters

Pureness Anti- Shine Refreshing Lotion- $23.00

One of the only two acne-targeting products in the entire line. This one was dual-purpose- it's supposed to be mattifying while treating acne with salicylic acid. However- I really, really didnt like it. One because EVERYTHING with mattifying properties in this line contains this weird white powdery stuff, I believe that when it comes to mattifying it is much more sanitary and makes more sense to remove or prevent the oil produced rather than just covering it up with blotting powder. Especially b/c this mattifying powder made me look like I was wearing face make-up when I wasnt. Also, it didnt clear my acne when I did have it. It'd be slightly better, but not gone. Useless. Oh, and id still be freaking oily -_____-' not even mattifying at all*shakes fist* I used this as a toner, and you have to shake it before you use it because that weird powder stuff settles to the bottom.

Pureness Blemish Clearing Gel- $19.00

Sucks. Useless. Doesn't even work. Next.

Moisturizers

Pureness Matifying Moisturizer Oil-Free $32.00

So this is one of the generally more well-loved items from this set [people are pretty mixed about this one- but still the general consensus is it DOESNT work]. My roomate thinks it helps somewhat, I think it does diddly squat. I dont like the texture of this moisturizer (too watery/runny) and once again its plagued with that white powdery substance they insisted on putting in all their mattifying products. I don't like how it looks, and I don't like how it works. It did nothing for oil control and wasn't even moisturizing. HOWEVER since some (read: very few) people LOVE this moisturizer, i'd pick up a sample at a shiseido counter or sephora store first before jumping to invest in it and if you're lucky, it might work for you. Since like I said, a few people do seem to like it.

Mattifiers

(keep in mind the lotion above is meant to mattify as well)

Pureness Matifying Stick Oil-Free $25.00

Hated it. Once again, that weird powder crap! And this stick has a gross gritty consistency- and I imagine its pretty unsanitary to put a creamy stick all over your oil-stricken dirty face. I just don't like any part of it. And it doesn't mattify well. Next.

Oil-Control Blotting Paper - $17.00 (100 sheets)

Another miss. (1) because blotting tissues shouldn't cost almost twenty dollars. Also, I dont think blotting tissues should have more of that weird powder crap. I like taking stuff OFF my face, not caking on weird white powder when its already greasy. And I think the price is dumb. Dumb dumb dumb For blotting tissues. I use cheap 3 dollar asian ones and they work better, are cuter and bigger (i post pics below).

Overall: My favorite part of this line was the cleansers, but whenever I broke out this never ever cleared me up completely. It'd diminish redness and spots by about 50% or so. In addition to the acne-fighting properties being pretty poor, I didn't feel any of the mattifying products did a decent job of mattifying. Added up all these products cost almost 200 dollars. Granted this is on the CHEAP side for Shiseido skincare- but I believe high end products are worth it because they deliver the results they promise. White Lucent is an expensive addiction :x but it works and does what it promises so I think it merits the cost. For 200 dollars, this line does little to nothing, and I think for 200 dollars something out there in the big big world can get you the skin you want. But then again, you cant be surprised. Asian skincare is not a go-to for acne...whitening YES LOL we're obsessed with spots/discoloration/pale skin but acne...not so much. A lot of my friends have only good things to say about dermalogica, its expensive no doubt. But i think its worthwhile because i've literally not heard a single bad review. For pureness, i've heard ONE SINGLE good review. So don't do it, don't bother, save your money and try something else.

[In case you don't know, I use Proactiv, but my friends have had good success with Murad as well]

But since I brought it up, my favorite blotting tissues:

I buy all my blotting tissues now at Mitsuwa or Marukai :D you can yelp for a

japanese grocery store' near you, try to go to the biggest one =] youll have more selection if the stores bigger. I have no loyalty to specific ones..I just grab whatever and make sure it has no oil-absorbing powders- which you guys can tell by now I dont like LOL.

But I like the japanese ones because they're more affordable, cuter, and bigger (which my oily forehead/cheeks/chin appreciates)

These are the ones i'm using now, but like I said I have no preference

Notice the fobby english LOL. But they were around 3.50 for 80 sheets :) Much larger and more affordable, no weird powder stuff. I really love blotting tissues because since I don't regularly wear any face makeup, my face gets oily within less than an hour. These are a life-saver

BTW I don't read japanese either so don't worry if you don't! The general words above all these products on the price display is usually "Oil-off paper" LOL so its pretty self-explanatory. They also have these in some SUPER cute packaging with mirrors and everything, but they're all cheaper than the american DS brands even, let alone the high-end ones. I do enjoy high-end blotting tissues just so i can feel fancy sometimes HAHA but I always lose em, so there's just no point.

Oh shoot. and one more thing, the highly requested back of the head shot for those of you who'd like to show it to your hairdresser to achieve a similar style [you can click the pic to blow it up as well]

I posted this on my fb..."fan page" too...HAHA [which btw, is right here if you wanna "like" it LOL] ;] but I know you guys aren't all on that. So here's a back shot of my head

It doesn't look like I have layers because I flat iron the ends so the back of my head looks sleek and not choppy, but they're there. And it looks dark because...flash...and it was night time with no lights..lighting makes it look different. But in the sun its a medium brown

Okay so thats all phew! Btw if I didn't mention a product from Pureness here, I haven't tried it. So...I cant give my opinion haha! Hope that helps some of you =]

love, Jackie :D