Review : Banila Co. Miss Flower & Mr Honey Cream

Hi everyone! *sweeps tumbleweeds away*

Miss Flower & Mr Honey Cream
This is probably my most luxurious K-beauty purchase to date. I mean look at it! ITS SHAPED LIKE A HONEYCOMB!!

Ingredients
Honey Extract, Aureobasidium Pullulans Ferment, Dipropylene Glycol, Dimethicone, Cyclopentasiloxane, Butylene Glycol, Glycerin, Cetearyl Alcohol, PCA Dimethicone, Niacinamide, Glycereth-26, Petrolatum, Trisiloxane, Glyceryl Stearate SE, Butyrospermum Parkii (Shea) Butter, Chrysanthellum Indicum (Golden Chamomile) Extract, Plukenetia Volubilis (Sacha Inchi) Seed Oil, Argania Spinosa (Argan) Kernel Oil, Olea Europaea (Olive) Fruit Oil, Royal Jelly Extract, Calendula Officinalis (Pot Marigold) Flower Extract, Chamomilla Recutita (Matricaria) Seed Oil, Propolis Extract, Oenothera Biennis (Evening Primrose) Oil, Limnathes Alba (Meadowfoam) Seed Oil, Helianthus Annuus (Sunflower) Seed Oil, Pentylene Glycol, Dimethiconol, Glyceryl Stearate, PEG-100 Stearate, Ammonium Acryloyldimethyltaurate/VP Copolymer, PEG-150 Distearate, Water, Raffinose, Caprylyl Glycol, Dipotassium Glycyrrhizate (Licorice Root Extract), Adenosine, Arginine, Caprylic/Capric Triglyceride, Octyldodecanol, Hydrogenated Coco-Glycerides, Sodium Starch Octenylsuccinate, Maltodextrin, Calcium Pantothenate, Hydrogenated Lecithin, Sodium Ascorbyl Phosphate, Tocopheryl Acetate, Pyridoxine HCI, Silica, Xanthan Gum, Disodium EDTA, Phenoxyethanol, Fragrance, CI 19140

Key Ingredients
The cream boasts three types of honey compounds: honey, royal jelly and propolis extract. Based on their place in the ingredients list, the percentage of royal jelly and propolis extract is likely to be small so bleh. I did a derp when I first looked at the ingredients. I thought the cream contained 42% honey extract AND black yeast (aureobasidium pullulans ferment). It actually contains 42% ‘concentrated aureobasidium pullulans ferment honey water’, which I understand is a combination of those two ingredients.

Honey has softening and moisturising properties and black yeast is a source of beta-glucans, which help the skin retain moisture and plump out fine lines. 

There are a few brightening ingredients such as niacinamide and liquorice root extract. Given their place in the ingredients list I didn't expect them to have any real effect and lets be real - I bought it for the benefits of hydrating honey/intoxictaing smell. 

Other ingredients to watch out for are acne triggers and sensitivities. The cream contains two of my acne triggers - shea butter and olive oil but I haven’t had any break outs.

The rest of the formula doesn’t interest me much because the bulk of it seems to me made up of glycols and silicones.

How to Use
Apply generously over your entire face after toner/moisturiser. Use Honey Cream as a base substitution in the morning to achieve a long lasting sleek and dewy complexion for all day. Apply generously multiple layers and use it as a sleeping pack at night. 

I personally found it too thick and slippery for daytime use. With suncream and cushion foundation applied on top and it turns into a gloopy mess and the finish takes you well beyond the boundaries of ‘dewy complexion' into oil slick territory. It feels a little heavy on the skin so I mix in a few drops of hyaluronic acid lotion or serum to thin it out.

Results 
I use the cream at night once or twice a week and it leaves my skin feeling so plump and soft the next morning - like a really good sheet mask with an extended aftereffect. I'd describe my skin as 'normal', prone to dryness and gets really dry when I lay on the Benzoyl Peroxide. A few months back BP left my skin in such a bad state that I considered taking a week’s holiday to avoid showing my face. (I also cried. Yep.) The cream didn’t work a miracle overnight but it did help get my skin back to normal in 4-5 days. I noticed the most improvement when I started mixing the cream with hyaluronic acid which made it thin enough to layer and absorb better.

TLDR:
Good Aspects:
+ The packaging, the smell
+ Saved my face from turning into parchment 
+ Helping me get through a never-ending bottle of Hada Labo Super Hyaluronic Lotion
+ Good ingredients obv!

Not-so-good Aspects:
- Works best when mixed with hyaluronic acid (IMO) - I shouldn’t have to add stuff to make something better
- Feels heavy on the skin (without HA)
- Not ideal for daytime use -> skincare routine becomes more expensive

Repurchase? Although I'm satisfied overall with this cream, I can do without it so I won't be repurchasing. It was brilliant for treating my extremely dry/flaky skin but I don't experience that frequently so it doesn't really add anything to my routine.

Price & Where to Buy
Hyundai Department Store: $28.27 (W32,640) + free international shipping!
Jolse: Currently $39.08 I bought it for $38.00
*The prices on Jolse fluctuate a lot. It's usually around $40
G-Market mini-shop: Usually W48,000, currently W40,320 
TesterKorea: W48,000 (but often sold with 20% discount for W38,400)
Koreadepart: $49.92
Official Website: 48,000 Won. Or $57.50 on the official English language website (??!!)

p.s. A review of the Hydrogel masks is coming next/soon! 

Review : Bio-Essence Hydra Tri-Action Aqua Droplet Sleeping Beauty Mask

Have you got your 10/million step Asian skincare routine down to a T? Great - get ready to make room for sleeping packs next. Sleeping packs or sleeping masks AKA overnight masks to us Westerners are designed to deliver an extra boost of anti-oxidants, hydrate, brighten etc. and are applied as the last step in your skincare routine. 

The Bio-Essence Hydra Tri-Action Aqua Droplet Sleeping Beauty Mask (50g) aims to hydrate, protect and nourish. It contains:
Water, Butylene Glycol, Cyclopentasiloxane, Dimethicone, Dimethicone/PEG-10/15 Crosspolymer, Dimethicone/Vinyl Dimethicone Crosspolymer, Glyceryl, Polyacrylate, Sodium Chloride, 1,2-Hexanediol, Betaine, Methylpropanediol, Allantoin, Sodium Hyaluronate, Hyaluronic Acid, Vaccinium macrocarpon (Cranberry) Seed Oil, Fragrance, Sodium Oxide, Calcium Oxide, Magnesium Oxide, Methylisothiazolinone

Key Ingredients 

Butylene Glycol 
A humectant: attracts water to the top layer of the skin to improve hydration.

Silicones 
An occlusive moisturiser: creates a barrier over the skin and helps prevent moisture loss. The number of silicones listed is sliiiightly off-putting and I wondered whether this mask would feel like a layer of cling film over my face. (It doesn’t help that one of them cones has VINYL in its name.) Short answer is that it does not.

Hyaluronic Acid & Cranberry Extract 
Ads focus on three key ingredients: Power Nano Hyaluronic Acid, Hyaluronic Acid and Cranberry Extract. I don’t think the stuff listed after silicones are in amounts significant enough to really benefit the skin - but that’s just my opinion~ Beginning with the first one … wth is “Power” Nano Hyaluronic Acid? Sounds like something Heisenberg might cook up but anyways... I can’t read the labelling (all in Mandarin) so I took the following description from Cultbeauty: ‘Power Nano’ hyaluronic acid has a small molecular size (15-25nm), for instant absorption and immediate skin plumping benefit, and hyaluronic acid - which creates a large, subcutaneous water ‘reservoir’, retaining up to 1000 times its molecular weight, for prolonged skin dewiness and softness. For my review on Hydraluron last year, I did a bit of research on hyaluronic acid and it seems the molecules are too big to penetrate the skin’s deeper layers and this business of it holding x1000 times its weight is irrelevant when it comes to topical application. What it does do (and do very well) is provide surface hydration and support the skin’s protective barrier.

Cranberry Seed Extract is an anti-oxidant.

Packaging 
The box is shrink wrapped and inside is a protective seal over the product. This is reassuring since one of the reasons I don’t order products online is a fear of contamination/hygiene issues. It doesn’t come with a spatula but eh. I prefer to use little coffee spoons to scoop it up.

How to Use 
1. Massage gently until aqua droplets form

2. Gently pat in until fully absorbed

3. Apply a thin layer as daily moisturiser or a thick layer as sleeping mask for a more intensive treatment

The mask starts off as a light, watery gel and melts on contact with skin forming little droplets. It has a lovely fresh scent which isn’t overpowering and doesn’t linger. As an overnight mask, I like to smooth it on and leave it be. It’s a bit weird to walk around the house with a wet face but no one cares what I look like at that time. It takes ~30 minutes to sink in. When applied as a thicker layer, it takes hours to sink in - I’m fast asleep by whatever time that is. The reason why I don’t pat the product in as per the instructions is because some of it will be absorbed by your hands = waste.

Obviously, this is completely impractical if you want to use it as a moisturiser - unless you have loads of time to spare in the morning. I don’t, so I apply it in small amounts and pat it in. It seems tedious but doesn’t take long. You could also smooth on a layer, wait ~10 minutes and then pat it in. I’ve made the mistake of not allowing enough time for it to fully absorb and my suncream turned to soup when I applied it TT.TT

Results 
I put the mask through a pretty tough test. In the week before my order arrived, I was using Benzoyl Peroxide to treat a pesky bout of spots which turned my skin dry, flaky and EW. I didn't want to try any of my new products in case they caused another breakout or made the buggers resurface. I tried a scrub and hydrating serums without any noticeable success so I gave the mask a shot (praying that it wouldn’t suffocate my skin with silicones) and couldn’t be happier with the results! I applied a thinnish layer as an overnight mask and by the next morning the flakiness had almost completely gone. My skin felt soft, supple, more radiant (though I don’t fully trust my judgment on that haha) and hydrated - seriously impressive! As a stand-in for moisturiser, it worked well to seal in other products and didn’t leave my skin feeling dry at the end of the day. My skin went back to normal in about three days ;)

Overall, I'm super happy with this purchase. I'd recommend it to anyone with dry/flaky skin and spot issues. The ingredients list makes the product look as though it’s chock full of silicones, but it’s really very water-heavy. About three quarters of the products I try cause breakouts; I've used this mask twice daily for about two weeks and haven’t had any issues.

Prices & Where to Buy 
Bio-Essence doesn't have an online shop and isn't sold in the UK. I ordered mine from Sasa.com for USD 17.50 (30% off, usually $25) equivalent to GBP 11.80 
For some odd reason Sasa sells a 50g size but all other shops sell an 80g jar o.O I didn't notice this when ordering >.<

It's also available on Cultbeauty.com for GBP 29.00/80g

In Singapore, it costs SGD 33.90 (Guardians) which is equivalent to USD 24.38 / GBP 16.63 You can also stock up and buy two for SG$49

And finally, in Watsons Malaysia, it's RM 55.92 = just over £10! Found this via Paris B's IG and dayum.

I’d definitely repurchase this mask BUT I'd also like to try Laneige’s Water Sleeping Pack, which is apparently the best. Boom Ratatata.