The One and Only Facewash You'll Ever Need

This has been my go-to face was for years! For just pennies per use, this face wash will give you sparkly, clean skin using no harsh chemicals or toxins. Also, by diluting the solution and putting it in a foaming soap dispenser, you'll stretch those pennies even more. Now you'll have enough to last you the whole year, with extra left over for your significant other, you friends, you mom, your mom's mom, your mother-in-law.., and her mom…. You get the point) I find one foaming pump is all I need to create a thick enough lather for my whole face. If your face is prone to dryness, just follow up with your favorite moisturizer (try one with SPF like this one from Juice Beauty)

For more eco-chic beauty tips, check out my blog at KathyKang.com

Leprechaun Loot

Create the perfect St. Patrick's Day look! Not only are these products free of harsh chemicals and toxins, they are also affordable (more beer money)! Check out www.KathyKang.com for more eco-chic beauty ideas:)

1) Zuzu Eyeliner Pencil in Leaf 
This creamy green liner will give your eyes a seductive pop

2) Jane Iredale Eyeshadow Trio in Golden Girl

This eyeshadow trio is all you'll need for that golden sparkle in your in eyes. No need to rob a leprechaun.

3) SPF 30 Tinter Mineral Moisturizer

This light tinted moisturizer will give you that sheer coverage while still allowing you to rock those freckles!

4) Beer Flavored Lip Balm
Sure, all that beer can be dehydrating, but with this balm at least your lips will still look luscious for that St. Paddy's kiss. (don't forget to wear some red!)

Go to Kathy Kang.com for more beauty tips and ideas!

My Zuzu Luxe Lipstick Collection

I've been a huge fan of Zuzu Luxe (and Gabriel Cosmetics) for years! You've probably seem the brand in the makeup section whenever you've walked through Whole Foods. Originally I was just looking for a bright, dramatic red lipstick, sans the lead. What started as one led to a small collection (kinda felt like collecting Pokemon o_O). There are so many different colors to choose from, it's hard to know where to start. Hopefully the swatches below will help you decide where to start. 

Lastly, I've included the product's label below and color-coordinated each ingredient based on the EWG's SkinDeep database and my own research. To see even more review and labels, just check out www.KathyKang.com. Have fun :)

Ingredients:

Simmondsia Chinensis (Jojoba) Seed Oil, Euphorbia Cerifera (Candelilla) Wax,Caprylic/Capric Triglyceride, Sesamum Indicum (Sesame) Seed Oil, Carthamus Tinctorius(Safflower) Seed Oil, Retinyl Palmitate, Tocopheryl Acetate, Lecithin, Crithmum Maritimum (Sea Fennel) Extract, Bisabolol, Aloe Barbadensis Leaf Extract, Iron Oxides, Mica,Hypericum Perforatum (St. John’s Wort) Extract, Titanium Dioxide

Ipsy Glam Bag: March 2014

Just got my March Ipsy Glam Bag in!

Check out the links below to see each product's color-coordinated ingredients label to see how it rates on toxicity levels and other harmful concerns.

(click each link to see colored label)

1) Pixi Beauty Flawless Beauty Primer

2) bareMinerals Marvelous Moxie Lipstick

3) Nicole by OPI Roughles Nail Polish - "On What Grounds"

4) Be a Bombshell Bora Bora Eyeshadow Quad

My Rating: ♥ ♥ ♥ ♥ ♥

My Review:
This bag was a little more disappointing than last month's. I was really hoping for some really cute, high-quality products, but these items are kind of "meh". I like the nail polish, which  I'm probably going to wear later this month when my girlfriends and I are doing a beachhouse getaway. I thought the eyeshadow quad would be fun to take too, but then I saw that in contained parabens (and I don't need anymore other those in my body than I've already accumulated >.<). As for the primer and lipstick, I think I'll probably hand them off to one of my girlfriends, since I'm not comfortable with the amount of mysterious chemicals and the use of retinyl palmitate. Oh yah, the bag is kind of weird, but it reminds me of microbiology so I think I'll keep it! ;)

Check out kathykang.com for more reviews!

Ipsy Glam Bag: March 2014 by kkangshi featuring beauty products

BB & CC Creams to Love

Everybody has heard of/uses/WorshipsTheGodsOf the beauty crazy known as "BB Creams", but with so many options to choose from, how to we pick what's best? What do we look for?  After reading the EWG's SkinDeep article on BB and CC Creams I felt like I had more of an idea of what BB creams were the best for me. Here are some of their Top Picks! 

1) Dr. Jart+ Renewalist BB Beauty Balm, SPF 40
2) Supergoop! CC Cream Daily Correct, SPF 35

3) Juice Beauty Stem Cellular Repair CC Cream, SPF 30

4) Physicians Formula Super BB Cream, SPF 30

5) Boscia BB Cream (Bronze or Light), SPF 27

6) Jane Iredale Glow Time Full Coverage Mineral BB Cream, SPF 25

BB & CC Creams to Love by kkangshi featuring face moisturizers

DIY Resuable Face Scrubbies

If you're a crafty person like me, you probably have your fair share of random pieces of yarn. All those little left over tidbits from previous projects just seem to accumulate forever, yet you feel guilty throwing them away. Well you're in luck, because this simple project doesn't require much more than a tidbit of yarn and very little time. 

Summer Garden Circle Pattern

To make a basic scrubby, all you need is about 6-10 feet of yarn and a crochet hook that is the appropriate size for you yarn. Simply make a "magic circle" and build out until you've reached your desired diameter. For an aesthetic touch, you can add another color or try a pattern (see images above and left). For extra scrubbing power, use a a more tough yarn like Sugar and Cream, and for a gentle scrub try a brand like Bernat Softee Baby Yarn. Also, tighter weaves will hold more soap, whereas a slightly loose weave will absorb more water thus creating a larger amount of suds (my preference).

And if all this sounds great, however you'd just like to buy a nice handmade face scrubby for yourself, check out this one from Silvashop on Etsy. (It even comes with a strap, which can also be made by simply creating a chain at the end of the circle and tying if off to the opposite end).

DIY Resuable Face Scrubbies by kkangshi on Polyvore

Picks of the Week

My Wishlist for 3/3/14 - 3/9/14

Picks of the Week by kkangshi featuring Butter London

1) Butter London Nail Lacquer in Cake-Hole

2) 100% Pure Fruit Pigmented Pretty Naked Palette

3) Vapour Organic Beaauty Stratus Soft Focus Instant Skin Perfector

4) Everyday Minerals Blush in Tea Rose

5) Juice Beauty Spa Set

Friday Face-Off: Givenchy vs. Zuzu Luxe

1. I was browsing the Sephora website and found their Our Favorites section. One of the first items to pop up was Givenchy's Le Rouge lipstick. I loved some of the colors, so I decided to look up the label and color it here. I was disappointed by some of the ingredients (Hydroxycitronella? BHT? ewwww~), so I decided to look up something comparable. I've been a huge fan of Zuzu cosmetics for years now, so I found a similar shade called Luxe Lipstick in Beso Beso AND it's formulated with better ingredients! Lastly, as if it wasn't good enough already, the whole line is cruelty-free, vegan and gluten-free. I think it's easy to tell who won this battle~

Before and After: The power of Contouring and Cosmetics

Before and Afters:

The Power of Contouring and Cosmetics

Often when I show pictures like these to people, there will inevitably be a debate on whether or not "that's the same girl in both pictures."

The power of makeup, especially contouring, has an amazing ability to reshape the face and bring out our best features. Here's a collection of pictures I have found around the web of some of the most astonishing before-and-after shots. Whether you style is more natural, or if you the Go Big Or Go Home Time, I think we can all agree that it's fun to image the possibilities of what we can do with cosmetics.

Click here to see my collection of 

Before and After images from around the web!

My Ipsy Bag: February

Got my Ipsy bag for January! Check out what's inside! Also, click from the products listed below to check out their color-coordinated ingredients label (for all the details how the toxicity level of each chemical in the product). 

1) City Color Be Matte Blush - Fresh Melon

2) Zoya Professional Nail Lacquer - Odette

3) Pop Beauty Plump Pout Mini - Fuchsia Freesia

4) J.Cat Beauty Eyelash + Glue

My Rating: ♥ ♥ ♥ ♥ ♥

This was my first Ipsy bag, and I have to say I was a little disappointed. While the blush color was gorgeous, after looking at the ingredients, I'm not sure I'm going to use it much. Parabens and fragrance are HUGE no-nos, especially for daily use. While the lipgloss is cute and comes in a fun color, it contained WAY too many mysterious ingredients for me to be comfortable ingesting. As for the lashes, I'll probably use them, but with a safer glue (if I ever find one). The best product in the bag was the nail polish, since Zoya is a 5-Free brand, however I wasn't lucky enough to get the cute color and instead ended up with "Odette" which is a pale lavender I'm sure I'll never use.

The cute pink bag everything comes in is adorable. I will use the pink bag.

My Ipsy Bag: February by kkangshi on Polyvore