Charcoal is an amazing thing. For centuries, it has been used for purification purposes. Activated charcoal is used to treat mild poisoning, and I remember when I was young, we used to always put blocks of charcoal inside the refrigerator to remove the odor from various food.
The Charcoal Mask from Saizen (or Daiso to the rest of the world) is a much-raved about product around my part of the world. It's effectivity as a beauty product, combined with its affordable price has made it a hit indeed.
However, since this product is so popular and can only be bought from one place, acquiring a tube was a huge challenge for me. The store was always out of stock whenever I dropped by. To be honest, I was quite frustrated, because I can understand not being able to buy something a bit expensive right away. But something as affordable as a Saizen item? It drove me pretty crazy. I had to have it.
Anyway, I'd been trying to content myself with other products from their charcoal line, because they were pretty interesting, too. So far, I've tried the bar soap, nose pore strips, cleansing cream and facial cleansing foam. They were all pretty nice, too.
I had a bit of luck last week. I went to Saizen not expecting it to be available but to purchase whatever I found interesting. (Yup, it's that kind of place.)
Lo and behold:
I didn't let this golden opportunity pass me by. I immediately bought a bunch, even though I didn't have any experience using it. Who knows when they'll have it again, right? I was thinking even if this product turned out to be not to my liking, I can always give them away. I have been buying little bits and pieces for stocking stuffers as early as now, anyway. Ha-ha.I was able to try it last weekend, and I likey! After using it, my face became noticeably clearer and brighter. Another thing I like about it is that, when it dries, it really is dry. I mean, like a bone. Its texture became like that of rice paper, which makes it really easy to peel off. Other peel-off masks I've tried stay soft and gummy when dry. So it's hard to remove completely, and the little bits that get left behind are actually the hardest to pick of. It can even hurt.
Hmm... cons? It hurts like the dickens to remove if you get it in your hair. Watch out for that. It's enough to make someone as bushy (LOL) as me cry.
Also, it's hard to come by, but you can get in touch with the store so that they can inform you when it's available. Some of the girls even reserve their tubes beforehand. As for me, Saizen is literally a stone's throw away from where I work and I don't mind checking in every now and then. Because finding it by chance is kinda like winning the lottery for me.
And some impulse buys can be really rewarding, too. Like this lipgloss.
Saizen Lipgloss in Pink Lame'
I love it so much. Light-colored glosses don't show up that well on me, but I really like the pay-off using this one. And the glitters are so fine, the color looks really natural when worn. I also love that it is flavor and fragrance-free. It doesn't bother me at all when I have it on.
I also dropped by HBC that day, since I was already there anyway. I wanted to try their Vitamin C Serum. It must have been my lucky day because this was another product that was usually out of stuck, but they had it. I also bought San-San Nail Polish in Cloudy Gray. It's pretty.
I love the color of their packaging, don't you?
That's it for now. Oh! I've joined the bandwagon. Here's a shot of me with the mask on, just in time for Halloween.
Boo!
See you later!
