WOW: ILSO Super Melting Sebum Softener

I explored SO much in my early days of discovering beauty and skincare, I don’t encounter too many products that blow me away these days. But I had a chance to try a new K-Beauty product that blew me away: ILSO Super Melting Sebum Softener.

Managing Sebaceous Filaments

I’ve talked about sebaceous filaments a lot on this blog. I’ve derided Biore strips and similar products. I find that managing them with a good cleansing routine, a silicone facial cleansing brush or washcloth (yes, a washcloth) keeps them sufficiently in check.

ILSO Super Melting Sebum Softener (long, name, I know – we love them here) is a thin, watery solution in a twist-top dispenser bottle. I got the kit linked above, which comes with some thin woven cotton pads. You saturate those pads with the solution and then lay onto your skin in your target area ensuring good contact with your skin. It is easy and not messy.

Then, do something else for ten minutes. When those ten minutes are up, you remove the saturated strip and go about your extractions. ILSO sells the pusher/scraper tool for this separately (it came in my kit), but they mention that you can alternatively use cotton swabs. I used a metal extraction tool I already had since I wasn’t (yet) sure how to use the tool.

ILSO Super Melting Sebum Softener Blew My Mind

And oh my god, the amount of stuff that just glided off my skin with no pressure! I was and am awestruck. Normally, when I do extractions even with steam, I have to apply some pressure with my tools or use tweezers to remove individual sebaceous filaments. Not so with this.

I saw some other reviews wondering if the stuff that comes away is just the product. No – it isn’t. I know. It is night and day.

Now, I will say that it may not be for everyone. My sebaceous filaments tend to slightly firm up and I can feel them if I touch my nose. I can often tweeze and remove them (and often do as part of how I manage them). That isn’t the case for everyone. If it isn’t for you, then this might not blow your mind.

I’m super curious about whether this could have any impact on keratosis pilaris. That’s next on my list to try, and I’ll report back on that.

Price

This is a pricier product in my lineup these days – but it is outstanding at its stated use case.

The kit I got is currently nearly $40, but that comes with the tool. If you don’t want the tool or are restocking, it is around $25. Their strips are convenient, but if you run out of those before you run out of the solution, you can buy more or just use thin cotton pads like these, which I keep on hand to use for nail polish remover.

The Bottom Line

My nose is eerily smooth even two days later. It’s hard not to want to touch it in disbelief. I don’t yet know how frequently I will use this, but I suspect around 1-2x per month. I’ll report back if that estimate is wrong. Even if it is once a week it is incredible! I also expect this bottle to last me at least 6 months.

DIY CreaClip Haircuts Save Me >$200/year

DIY haircutting is super easy and quick with the CreaClip

In my area, and in much of the US, you’re not getting out of a typical women’s salon haircut for less than $54. Using the CreaClip to cut my own hair saves me over $210/year assuming a quarterly cut (my situation). Now, I trim more often since it is so quick!

I never saw myself as an As Seen on TV buyer, but between the Turbie Twist and this, here we are. The CreaClip was pitched on Shark Tank (never seen it).

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Mac Motif

Lately – who am I kidding, for the last several years – I have been craving simplicity when I wear makeup. Full faces are very rare. Most of the time, I’m doing 1-2 shade eye looks that I can do with next-to-no effort. I’ve been keeping the eyes light and neutral – I want to look awake and well-groomed, not made-up.

And, wow – I’ve been sleeping on Mac Motif.

Perusing and Purging

I recently did a purge of makeup that is well past its acceptable use date. As I went through ancient pieces, I came cross my old pan of Mac Motif in my Z-Palette (note: I wouldn’t buy a Z-Palette today; I’d buy this double-sided magnetic palette from Adept Cosmetics instead. I just don’t need to replace it). This pan was ancient; I got it back when I had that whole Glambot fiasco! That was SO long ago! (Don’t worry; I have not used it in ages.)

Missing Mac Motif

I did swatch it, though – and I had completely forgotten how gorgeous it is! Mac Motif is described as a champagne gold that reflects pink. I tend to avoid champagne shadows at this point because they often come across too frosty for my taste. Motif has a sheen, but isn’t frosty at all. The reflect is subtle, not loud, but enough to be interesting and fun for me to see without being distracting or compromising my professional image.

So, I took advantage of a Mac sale to get a new refill pan ($11 retail; prefer a shadow compact?). I’ve used it every time I’ve had to be on camera. I throw Painterly on underneath it, throw it on, make my crease evident again, line with a dark brown eyeliner because I’ve reached that point where black is often too much.

I look awake without looking harsh; mission accomplished.

The Bottom Line

If you’ve been collecting for a long time, look back through your stash!

You might rediscover something you either loved in the past or had but didn’t use much! While it might mean you want to buy a fresh version of it, that’s a wiser spending choice than getting lost in the latest 7235239523 hot new whatever, whoever is shilling.

On Greys

Do you ever think about how much beauty is simply fighting the inevitable? I’d hardly describe myself as a “go with the flow” sort of person, but at the same time, how exhausting (and expensive) is it to try to swim against the tide in perpetuity? There’s a vast ocean of difference between electing not to participate in a common ritual and giving up on how you present yourself.

I started getting pesky greys before I hit 30. Naturally, they chose to present front and center around my part. So, like any mature, sane, well-adjusted woman – I plucked them on sight. Of course, this means you don’t have a solid idea of how much you have.

Last autumn, I stopped as an experiment.

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Balayage Blues – Wella Color Charm Painting Discontinued

I’ve had balayage highlights since 2016. When CoVid entered the world, I started DIYing my balayage using a Wella Color Charm Painting clay-based lightener to reduce my exposure to risky environments. Pandemic aside, I found that I enjoyed not being in a salon surrounded by people making bizarre choices while in the shared space.

For example, the last time I was in the chair, a fellow customer seated next to me felt it acceptable and appropriate to loudly Facetime her adult son. It was disruptive, distracting, and disappointing. Many people look forward to and enjoy salon visits for relaxing pampering, and this rude customer ruined that for at least five people.

Anyway, around New Year’s, I tried refreshing my balayage. I succeeded. My Wella Color Charm Painting lightener was evidently on the older (and therefore not as effective) side. I didn’t quite get the lift I expected or hoped for.

That may be a good thing, though. When shopping to refresh my Wella Color Charm Painting stash, I found that Wella discontinued it because, of course, they did.

So that leaves me at a crossroads (again) regarding my balayage:

  • try other lighteners to find one I like
  • resume salon visits
  • stop

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Grad School: Defeated & An Update

I wrapped up grad school slightly faster than anticipated! 🎉So, after nearly five years of being a full-time student alongside my full-time professional employment, I have free time back.

Since the last post, I haven’t done much beauty-related stuff. Overall, I’ve been primarily wash-and-wear because my life was work, grad school, work, grad school, grief, holidays, grief, grad school, work, etc.

On the grief front – two weeks before Christmas, we lost a precious member of our family. Ohki, our loving, gentle giant, was fourteen and magnificent. We are heartbroken. We were so lucky to share our lives with her and we miss her so, so much.

So – it’s hard to want to bother with things that feel so trivial and fleeting when you’re in the throes of grief.

But I tried to do a few small things to cheer myself up. I reorganized my manicure supplies into a train case my husband gifted me – it’s a better solution than I had. Organization projects are usually satisfying.

I managed to give myself a festive, glittery manicure with Luxio Figment. I can’t say enough about this gel polish; it’s a beautiful, glittery neutral that manages not to be loud. You could wear it every day without it being out of place! I mean, look at the product photo found at Polished Pinkies Pro, crediting MKris Nails:

My only manicure during grad school - Luxio Figment. Photo from Polished Pinkies Pro

For my next one, I will do a grey-and-white situation (for her) with Gelaze Recycle and Luxio Coy. Having some cheerful things around you can help during dark times.

I intend to resume a semblancy of consistency, but I’m not sure what the frequency looks like yet as I figure out what my post grad school new normal looks like. Stay tuned.